It wasn't easy, it wasn't pretty, and it was controversial. But in the end the No. 8 Wisconsin football team emerged from Bulldog Stadium in Fresno, Calif., with a 13-10 victory over the Fresno State Bulldogs Saturday night.
It is hard to say that one play defines a complete game, but if there was one it occurred late in the third quarter. With the Badgers up 10-7, Fresno State took the field at its own 19-yard line. On the first play from scrimmage, Bulldogs senior quarterback Tom Brandstater threw a pass over the middle to sophomore wide receiver Devon Wylie, who it seemed caught the ball, turned up field and took a few steps before Badger junior safety Shane Carter tackled him, jarring the ball loose. The ball was recovered by DeAndre Levy, and it appeared that Wisconsin was about to capitalize on another Fresno State turnover - Wisconsin had 10 points off Bulldog turnovers in the game.
But Fresno State head coach Pat Hill challenged the play, and much to the surprise of everyone other than the Bulldogs, the play was overturned.
After the 2008 Outback Bowl, UW head coach Bret Bielema mistakenly said that he would never coach a game with WAC officials again - it was actually referees from the Mountain West Conference who officiated the Outback Bowl. Whether it was payback for his comments in January, or just one of the strangest reversals to ever be seen in college football, the play swung all the momentum in favor of the Bulldogs, something that the Badgers desperately needed on the road.
On the field, I thought for sure (it was a fumble). I was like, `This is a dumb review. There's no way it's going to be turned over,"" Levy said. ""When I saw the (replay), I still kind of thought the same thing. I don't know what the exact ruling was; I was just trying to think about the next play. It kind of surprised me but we continued to respond, which is good.""
While it was Wisconsin's offense that shined in the first two weeks of the season - with 404 yards on the ground against Akron, and 329 yards through the air in week two against Marshall - it was the Badger's defense that had to hold off the Bulldogs time after time. Levy, along with fellow senior outside linebacker Jonathan Casillas - who returned after missing the first two games with a knee sprain - led the way for Wisconsin.
Levy had a team-high nine tackles, along with one sack, one interception and one pass breakup. Levy's interception came in the first half when senior defensive end Matthew Shaughnessy batted a pass from Brandstater up into the air, and Levy was able to haul it in on the opposite side of the field. Casillas had seven tackles, and one in the third quarter proved to be one of the most important of the game. Wisconsin was clinging onto a 13-7 lead, when Fresno State running back Ryan Mathews took a screen pass, and after making a few Badger defenders miss, seemed destined for the endzone. But Casillas ran him down from the opposite side of the field, and the defense went on to hold the Bulldogs to a field goal.
""Jonathan Casillas, in my mind, he might have won the game when he ran that guy down and tackled him and made it into a field goal,"" Bielema said. ""If he doesn't do that, they go in and score a touchdown, we don't know if we ever win this game.""
However, the defense was not without its poor plays. Fresno's only touchdown was a 47-yard pass to Wylie, Mathews' 61-yard screen pass that Casillas caught and junior tailback Lonyae Miller had a 57-yard run early in the fourth. But in true Badger fashion, the defense held down by its own goal-line.
""That was big, being able to stop them, even when they had those big, long gains,"" Shaughnessy said. ""Just to hold them to a field goal was great.""
The Badgers have not lost a non-conference game on the road since 1991, and it appears that luck has played some role in keeping that streak going. Freshman kicker Kevin Goessling missed three field goals for the Bulldogs, and could have single-handedly won the game for Fresno State.
Offensively for the Badgers, junior running back P.J. Hill had 112 yards on 26 carries. In the passing game, senior quarterback Allan Evridge was 12-of-24 for 143 yards, while junior tight end Garrett Graham had five catches for 58 yards and one touchdown - his third of the season.
-The Wisconsin State Journal contributed to this report
