Wisconsin kicked off its November stretch run with an assertive 52-3 win over Rutgers on Saturday in Piscataway, N.J.

UW (6-3 overall, 4-2 Big Ten) found some complementary ingredients on offense via the ground and through the air, and the defense displayed its turnover-creating abilities against Rutgers (4-5, 1-5).

BadgerBlitz.com hands outs its grades for each phase -- offense, defense and special teams -- and provides game balls after the cross-divisional victory.

Paul Chryst's offense tallied 45 of UW's 52 points on the scoreboard during Saturday's blowout. Overall, Wisconsin accumulated 579 total yards -- 274 passing and 305 rushing. Everything came together for this unit.

Tailbacks Braelon Allen and Chez Mellusi combined to gain 204 yards on 30 carries and two touchdowns (Mellusi's status will be something to watch after his third quarter injury). Quarterback Graham Mertz completed nearly 69% of his throws and threw his first multi-touchdown pass game of the 2021 season. Wide receivers Kendric Pryor and Danny Davis tallied a total of 144 receiving yards and each recorded a touchdown.

Wisconsin allowed just one sack and four tackles for loss, and Mertz looked more and more comfortable in the pocket. UW converted 6-of-12 third downs, held on to the ball for 37:32 and averaged 8.3 yards per snap.

Update, Nov. 12: StatBroadcast reported on its database that UW went 7-of-12 on third down; however, the correct stats is 6-of-12.

Another day, another impressive performance by Jim Leonhard's defense. The Badgers stymied the Scarlet Knights' attack, holding them to 207 yards (112 passing, 95 rushing) on 3.6 yards per play. Rutgers converted only 1-of-11 third downs and 1-of-4 fourth downs, and it did not cross the goal line once on Saturday.

The Badgers allowed rushes of 16 and 23 yards to tailback Isaih Pacheco -- who finished with 55 yards on nine carries -- but they held the Scarlet Knights' offense to just 3.2 yards per carry. Before exiting the game, quarterback Noah Vedral completed only 8-of-16 passes for 81 yards with two first-half interceptions. Both led to eventual touchdowns, one of which came directly on Caesar Williams' pick-six in the second quarter.

UW registered only two sacks on the day, but it tallied six tackles for loss. Even the backups in the third and fourth quarters preserved a touchdown-free performance.

The defense as a whole deserves a game ball for its effort.

Update, Nov. 12: Statbroadcast showed seven tackles for loss, but the correct stats state six tackles for loss.

Overall, a solid effort from this phase of the game, and Rutgers did not alter momentum. Former Badger receiver/returner Aron Cruickshank played briefly for the Scarlet Knights, but unfortunately left the game due to injury after returning a kickoff.

On that second-quarter play, Cruickshank fumbled the ball -- with the forced fumble credited to kicker Jack Van Dyke -- and Wisconsin's Alexander Smith recovered it at the Rutgers' 29 yard-line.

Greg Schiano's kickoff returners overall averaged 17.8 yards per attempt.

Collin Larsh missed a chip-shot 35-yard field goal, only to rebound to connect on a 29-yarder in the second quarter. Wisconsin did not punt until the fourth quarter, with Andy Vujnovich and Conor Schlichting hitting 34- and 37-yard boots, respectively.

The redshirt sophomore signal caller completed 11-of-16 passes (68.8%) for 240 yards and three touchdowns and one interception. He hit five different receivers on the day, and he completed eight passes of 15 or more yards, according to StatBroadcast.

There would be a couple balls Mertz would like back, like all quarterbacks during the course of each game, but he appeared poised in the pocket and delivered good passes.

Pryor caught four passes for 72 yards overall. including a 25-yard touchdown late in the second quarter where he fought off a Rutgers defender to make a contested reception. He also made a nice block that helped spring Danny Davis for a 72-yard touchdown in the third quarter.

The true freshman tailback ran 15 times for 129 yards and a touchdown against Rutgers. The Fond du Lac, Wis., product went over the century mark for the fifth straight contest, and he reeled off big runs of 33, 28 and 36 yards in Piscataway.

The sixth-year senior cornerback returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown in the first half, but he also registered two tackles and another pass breakup.

Much kudos is deserved for these Badgers that entered later in the game that held the Scarlet Knights out of the end zone. Instead of garbage time points and a lot of extra yardage accrued in the stats sheets, Wisconsin contained Rutgers.

In particular, safety Hunter Wohler tallied six tackles on the night -- five of which were on the defense. Redshirt freshman Jordan Turner also picked off a fourth-quarter throw that neutralized any chance to move the chains in UW territory.

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