When people think of Big Ten football, they typically think of smashmouth running and strong defense, resulting in a low-scoring, close game. Wisconsin’s 10-6, conference-opening loss to Iowa fell in line with that archetype, but it was much more brutal.
Both teams tried to play it like traditional Big Ten football, attempting to establish the run early to control the clock. The Hawkeyes had a bit more success than the Badgers, gaining 99 yards on 22 carries in the first half, compared to Wisconsin’s 44 on 16 attempts.
“There's going to be games where you've got to win it running the football and you've got to win it throwing the ball, and I didn't think we were consistent enough at either one today to really be as good as we needed to be today,” head coach Paul Chryst said.
With the running game stalling, the Badgers turned to redshirt senior quarterback Joel Stave to carry the offense, and he couldn’t find the consistency that guided him through the first four games. He finished 21-of-38 (55 percent completion rate) for 234 yards with two interceptions and two fumbles lost.
“As an offense, I’d say that one was on us,” Stave said. “I personally need to play better, the offense needs to play better. We just need to make sure we’re doing that.”
As much as Stave didn’t put Wisconsin in a position to win, he also didn’t lose the game for his team. His offensive line didn’t give him great protection at times, and it couldn’t open up lanes in the running game, and the Iowa defense seemed to have an answer for everything the Badgers threw at it.
Many of Wisconsin’s problems started up front. Redshirt senior left tackle Tyler Marz didn’t have a great game, and the three redshirt freshmen starters at left guard, right guard, and right tackle all showed their inexperience at times, stalling their usually consistent rushing attack.
“We got young guys that haven’t had a lot of reps, and they need that experience, and they need to mature quickly,” Marz said. “We’ve all been there. I was a young guy once, and so, [we’ve] gotta teach these guys what they’re missing, look at myself and see what I did wrong, and go from there.”
If the Badgers are looking for an area to build on, they don’t have to look any further than their defense, as it was just about the only group that doesn’t deserve much blame for the loss. It didn’t completely shut down the Hawkeye offense, but it played well enough to win the game, holding Iowa to just 10 points and under 80 yards passing.
The unit’s strong performance was led by senior outside linebacker Joe Schobert, who finished with a career-high three sacks to go with five quarterback hits and two forced fumbles. He kept Iowa redshirt junior quarterback C.J. Beathard uncomfortable throughout the game, generating pressure from a number of different spots in the front seven.
“I thought they blocked me a couple times pretty good,” Schobert joked. “But like I said, [defensive coordinator Dave] Aranda gets us in a great spot to get matchups in our favor and keep the offense guessing, whether it’s the offensive line or backs trying to protect. I think as a whole defense, we were able to win a lot of those one-on-one matchups today, and that’s something we need to build on.”
Schobert’s individual effort was strong, but as he alluded to, the onus fell on the entire defense. As effective as their pass rush was, they still gave up 128 yards on 26 carries to the Hawkeye’s redshirt senior running back Jordan Canzeri. Iowa was able to eat up some clock in the second half with the ground game, giving UW less time for a comeback.
“I think we played pretty decent, but there were still mistakes,” redshirt senior cornerback Darius Hillary said. “I think those mistakes that we made, we kind of beat up ourselves, but I definitely think next week will be a lot better.”
As a team, Wisconsin isn’t dwelling on this game, and it's looking ahead to next week. The Badgers got some déjà vu from last season, as they lost their Big Ten opener to Northwestern on the road. They would then go on to win their final seven games of the season, on their way to the conference championship game.
“We’re in the same position as we were last year, and we’ve got a lot of football ahead of us, and so we need to learn from this film and get ready for Nebraska,” Tyler Marz said.
The leaders of this team are moving on from this ugly game, and they hope that some much more solid football is in their future once again.
