Sophomore running back P.J. Hill left the game in the first quarter Saturday against Indiana, but it did not slow down UW's rushing attack as the Badgers still gained 279 yards on the ground.
It was pretty obvious that UW (3-2 Big Ten, 7-2 overall) was able to establish their plan of attack, as six of their first eight plays were running plays.
Indiana allowed the cardinal and white to move the ball into its territory before the drive eventually stalled the attack, forcing UW to settle for a field goal.
Following Indiana's ensuing three and out, the Badgers ran the ball 10 out of the 11 plays before P.J. Hill finally bulled his way across the goal-line opening up a quick 10-0 lead.
That would be the last time P.J. Hill carried the ball as he left the game with an injury to his left leg. However, true freshman Zach Brown stepped in and continued to move the chains for the Badgers and tallied 14 carries for 41 yards and a touchdown.
It was good to get a rhythm going, just run after run,"" true freshman Zach Brown said.
One of the weaknesses hampering Indiana was their rush defense and UW exploited it. The Badgers rushed the ball 55 times throughout the game and managed a 5.1-yard per carry average. This certainly marked an improvement from a team that just two weeks ago could not muster any sort of offensive rhythm when they were defeated by Penn State.
""I just think we are doing our assignments better,"" sophomore offensive lineman Gabe Carimi said. ""I think we always had the intensity, but people are becoming more confident in their assignments and starting to know and go.""
UW once again dominated the time of possession as they improved upon their average of nearly 34 minutes a game as they held the ball for 35:23 against Indiana, including a first quarter in which the Badgers held the ball for 12:21.
""I talked to our offense about being able to move the chains,"" head coach Bret Bielema said. ""To keep the time of possession, that was going to be critical for us.""
The Badgers tallied 14 of their 23 first downs on the ground and kept the No. 2 scoring offense in the Big Ten off the field.
""I noted to our players and made a big deal to our defense they (Indiana) have the No. 2 scoring offense, but they are 8th or 9th in time of possession,"" Bielema said. ""So they obviously live off the big play.""
Nonetheless, it was UW's second dominating performance in as many weeks. Heading into the toughest part of the Big Ten schedule, it seems UW has righted the wrongs that plagued them earlier in the season.
""We're getting where we need to go, we're on the right direction,"" true freshman wide receiver Kyle Jefferson said. ""We're going straight and we have got to keep going straight.
