In the team’s most complete effort of the season, Wisconsin thoroughly dominated Maryland in a 52-7 victory Saturday at Camp Randall.
The outcome was never in doubt. Though slow starts have plagued them all season long, the Badgers established the tempo early when Melvin Gordon scored on Wisconsin’s first drive, the first of three touchdowns he had on the day.
Many expected Gordon to run wild Saturday considering the Terrapins were ranked 104th in run defense coming into the game. Though he scored three times and ran for 122 yards, Maryland held the Heisman candidate to 5.5 yards per carry, his second-lowest average of the season.
Wisconsin’s defense was the real star of the day. Facing a Maryland team that had been averaging 35 points per game, the Badgers stifled the Terrapins while allowing just 175 total yards of offense. Maryland converted only three of its 15 third down attempts and also failed twice on fourth down.
Getting two players back from injury was key for the Wisconsin defense. Redshirt senior nose guard Warren Herring and redshirt senior Marcus Trotter both returned after missing a combined six full games.
“I had to get back into the speed of the game. The first couple of plays wasn’t my best,” Herring said. “But as the game went on it definitely picked up. Guys were moving a little bit faster and I had to loosen up, but it felt great.”
Having two experienced players back in the lineup allowed the Badgers to be more aggressive on defense. Wisconsin routinely blitzed safeties Michael Caputo and Peniel Jean to bring pressure and disrupt the timing of Maryland’s spread option offense. Caputo was particularly skilled at correctly timing the snap count to crash across the line as the ball was hiked.
“That comes with preparation and that comes with the feel and the demeanor of the game,” Caputo said. “That’s a QB-center kind of deal. Just reading what he does and timing it up right.”
Head coach Gary Andersen praised the defense’s preparation and applauded the scout team for helping the starters get the snap timing down.
“That's film study, and it is young men caring when they leave the facility and spending time focusing on the little things that win you football games,” Andersen said. “It's very difficult. It's an art.”
The starting linebacker corps of Trotter, Derek Landisch, Joe Schobert and Vince Biegel once again demonstrated its playmaking ability by combining for two sacks and 19 tackles, 6.5 of which were for a loss. The secondary also limited Maryland’s dynamic receiving duo of Deon Long and Stefon Diggs to a combined seven catches for 80 yards and a garbage time touchdown.
On offense, Joel Stave and Tanner McEvoy both showcased their strengths in the second week of the dual quarterback experiment. Stave looked comfortable in the pocket while McEvoy showed off his ability as a runner.
For the first time all season, the Badgers successfully completed a downfield pass when Stave found redshirt sophomore Alex Erickson for a 43-yard play action pass on Wisconsin’s first drive. Gordon scored on the next play from six yards out to give the Badgers a lead they would not relinquish.
Stave and Erickson hooked up three times on play action throughout the game. One of those was a 47-yard touchdown pass on a beautifully thrown ball in the third quarter to put Wisconsin up 31-0. Stave finished 9-15 for 155 yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, McEvoy ran for a 60-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter on a quarterback keeper. He went 5-7 for 44 yards and ran for 84 yards on four carries.
McEvoy led four drives and Wisconsin scored 21 points when he was at the helm. Stave led nine drives, scoring five times for a total of 31 points. After the game, Andersen was asked whether or not the dual quarterback system would continue to work.
“They handle it well, the kids on the team handle it well,” Andersen said. “I have no reservations at all saying that we are going to move forward and have the ability to play both of those young men, and they've executed at a high level.”
Perhaps the most improved unit, however, was special teams, two weeks after a dismal outing against Illinois. Kickoff specialist Andrew Endicott had four touchbacks on his nine kickoffs while punter Drew Meyer landed three of his four punts inside the 20.
Special teams also showed some flash in the first half, with Meyer completing a jump pass on a fake punt to pick up a first down and third string quarterback Bart Houston launching a 52-yard punt on a rugby-style kick.
“Anything you can do to cause people to practice a little bit more, cause a little bit more issues for them as they prepare for you, then on game day it's a positive,” Andersen said.
