The Wisconsin Badgers (3-7, 1-6) suffered a demoralizing 31-7 loss at Indiana (11-0, 8-0) Saturday afternoon, just a week after an upset win gave the program a glimmer of hope.
Wisconsin hung with the Hoosiers in the first half, finding themselves down just a field goal at halftime. Success on the defensive end kept the Badgers’ hopes alive as they kept a strong Indiana passing offense at bay.
On their first drive of the game, the Badgers compiled a punishing 48-yard drive lasting almost eight minutes. Wisconsin picked up three first down conversions and the second longest play of their game — a 19-yard pass from freshman quarterback Carter Smith to tight end Jackson Acker — to get into field goal range. But Wisconsin was unable to cash in on their opening drive when kicker Nathaniel Vakos struggled to complete the kick, missing from 44 yards out. It’s been a year to forget for Vakos, who has connected on just 5 of 9 field goal attempts this year.
Indiana, on the other hand, opened the scoring on the ensuing drive with a 31-yard passing touchdown from Heisman frontrunner Fernando Mendoza to wide receiver Charlie Becker. Up 7-0, the Hoosiers struggled to score throughout the second quarter, stalling drives with sacks and penalties.
Wisconsin’s first and only scoring drive of the game came late into the second quarter, as Smith found tight end Lance Mason for a 45-yard touchdown pass on a busted 4th and 1 conversion.
The Badgers set the drive up on the ground. Wisconsin ran five rushing plays, each from a different player. Running back Gideon Ituka, wide receivers Trech Kekahuna and Vinny Anthony II, Jackson Acker and Smith himself all contributed to the 28 rushing yards gained on the drive.
Just before the half, Indiana made a final leap to get ahead of the Badgers at half, connecting on a 37-yard field goal that put them up 10-7.
From there, it was all Indiana.
The Hoosiers seemed to find themselves in the second half opening the third quarter with a touchdown drive. After a 48-yard pass completion from Mendoza to Becker got Indiana to the Wisconsin 25-yard line, the Hoosiers capitalized with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Mendoza to tight end Holden Staes.
A concerning moment for the Badgers came with 8:35 to go in the third, as Ituka was carted off the field with an injury. On a running play, Ituka was initially slowed by defensive lineman Stephen Daley before defensive lineman Daniel Ndukwe leveled him. Ituka struggled to lift his head and get off his back and was carted off the field on a stretcher.
As players from both teams took a knee, Ituka gave a thumbs-up as he left the field. He led the Badgers in rushing with 32 yards on 9 carries.
The Hoosiers grabbed another second half touchdown after Smith’s pass fell into the hands of Hoosier defensive back Devan Boykin with 9:42 left in the 4th quarter. Boykin was marked down just across the halfway point at the 48 yard line in Badger territory. A flurry of long pass completions led them to the endzone, finishing the drive with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Mendoza to wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. to make it 31-7
The Badger offense struggled throughout the second half, with their five drives ending in three punts, one fumble and one interception. Smith ended the game completing 9 of 15 passes for 98 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Wisconsin’s defensive star, true freshman linebacker Mason Posa, had another commanding performance getting one sack and leading both defenses in total tackles at 12.
Darryl Peterson finished the game with six total tackles and led both teams with 2.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss.
The Wisconsin Badgers will head back to Camp Randall this weekend for their final home game of the season to face the Illinois Fighting Illini.
