Saturday was a day of firsts for redshirt freshman quarterback Joel Stave. Making his first collegiate start, the Greenfield, Wis. native threw his first touchdown (and interception) and took a big hit from a defender for the first time since high school.
He also heard UW fans chanting his name as he ran off the field after the game, an experience he said he’s never had before.
That came shortly after he registered his first win as the Badger quarterback, a 37-26 victory over Texas-El Paso.
“I’ve always loved this team and loved this state because I grew up here,” Stave (12-17, 210 yards, TD, INT) said. “Just the opportunity to play here, play in the Big Ten, is really exciting for me.”
The young signal caller certainly was not perfect, but for an offense in desperate need of a spark—and playing without senior All-American running back Montee Ball after he suffered an apparent concussion in the second quarter—Stave led the Wisconsin offense to its best performance of the young season.
Stave found a rhythm early, completing his first three passes. Early in the second quarter, he found redshirt junior wide receiver Jared Abbrederis (6 receptions, 147 yards, TD) for 60 yards.
On a play-action pass, Abbrederis beat UTEP cornerback Darren Woodard badly with a double move. It is a play Abbrederis, who missed last week’s game because of a concussion suffered Sept. 8 against Oregon State, has made over and over in his career in Madison.
“I was really excited,” Stave said when asked about his pre-snap expectations. “I knew it was a good play, I had a lot of confidence that Jared would be open and that we’d have protection to throw it down there. When he’s able to separate like that, he can really give you a good window to throw it into.”
The two connected on a similar play later in the second quarter, when Abbrederis worked another double move up the right sideline and put the finishing touches on a 47-yard touchdown without any Miners around him.
That score put UW ahead 23-6 with 4:23 left in the half. After the Badger defense forced a punt, the Wisconsin offense had a chance to pile on further, but Stave made his first big mistake.
One play after taking a sack, Stave tried to throw an out route to his right, but it was intercepted by UTEP senior defensive back Drew Thomas.
“Looking at it, I thought for sure it was going to be good,” Stave said of the throw. “[The corner] was playing off by about 10 yards and he just kind of sat on the route. He played it really well. Obviously, I’d like to have it back.”
On Wisconsin’s first drive of the second half, Stave and junior running back James White botched an exchange, but the quarterback managed to recover the fumble.
“You can’t ever give up the ball,” he said. “That’s the most important thing.”
Overall, the Badgers totaled a season-high 423 yards of offense. Bielema said that starts under center.
“Great quarterbacks are the guys that can make plays when there isn’t an answer, and he made some scrambles and plays in the first half that kept drives alive and I think that’s huge for him confidence wise going forward,” the UW head coach said. “Everything is not always going to be as clean as you want.”
But was it good enough for Stave to get the nod again next week, when Wisconsin opens Big Ten play with a stiff road test in Lincoln, Neb.?
“I hope so,” Stave said. “We’ll see what the film says and just learn from it.”
