The season began with optimism of a passing offense unlike anything ever seen at Camp Randall. Senior wideout Lee Evans was returning, and many hoped he would return to a form he once had. Senior quarterback Jim Sorgi was taking the offense over for the season and questions were raised as to whether he could handle the abuse. Would junior safety Jim Leonhard return with 11 interceptions again, or would last season be proven a fluke?
All these questions were put to the test Aug. 30 at Morganstown, W. Va. The Badgers faced a tough Mountaineer team that is currently in the running for the Big East crown. For the first half, the only touchdown scored was from a blocked punt by Alex Lewis in the endzone. It took until the fourth quarter for UW to score two touchdowns, one by Evans and one by junior tailback Anthony Davis, to bring home the season opening win.
The next week, against Akron, UW was in danger of losing to the Zips, but the defense held the Zips out of the endzone and held them on the one-yard line on fourth down. The very next play, Sorgi found Evans down the sideline for 99 yards as Wisconsin beat Akron 48-31.
The magic ran out the next week against UNLV. In the rain, Davis suffered a season-long ankle injury and the offense turned over the ball five times.
The loss sparked something within the team as it won four straight games, culminating in one of the greatest victories in UW history. Victories over North Carolina, Illinois and Penn State prepped Wisconsin for No. 3 Ohio State.
The lights were on at Camp Randall as Wisconsin faced the defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes Oct. 11. The Camp crowd was on a fevered pitch all game as the fanbase fought off the cold rain to see UW beat the Buckeyes 17-10. Freshman running back Booker Stanley, filling in for injured running backs Davis and sophomore Dwayne Smith, had 132 yards on the ground against the best run defense in the conference. Junior backup quarterback Matt Schabert filled in for the choked Sorgi by hitting an open Evans for the most exciting touchdown of the night.
After the victory, Wisconsin struggled to find what was needed to win as the Badgers dropped three close heartbreakers to Purdue, Northwestern and Minnesota. Purdue's passing offense stripped apart the UW defensive backs. Northwestern just saw UW not show up at all.
The game against Minnesota gave UW fans hope once again. Down 24-6, Wisconsin made a thrilling comeback in which they tied the game 34-34 on the arm of Sorgi. However, UW still lost 37-34 on a last-second field goal.
Then came Michigan State. Evans had 258 yards and five touchdowns. Smith had 207 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. The 56-21 win rivaled the Ohio State victory as the most inspiring win of the season.
The Badgers have one more at the Camp and a bowl game to go to finish out the 2003 season.
