Notes: Third downs critical on D

WEST LAFAYETTE - Most of the focus after the Badgers' second half turnaround led to a 34-13 victory was on the turnovers, which seemed to spark the entire team.

Simple execution may have had something to do with it, too.

In the first half, Wisconsin ran into a familiar problem as it struggled to stop Purdue on third downs. The Boilermakers were 6 for 9 on third down conversions, as the UW defense struggled to get off the field and give its offense an opportunity to put point on the board.

"We knew the only way we were going to win this ballgame was getting off the field on third downs, and we were able to do that in the second half," said linebacker Culmer St. Jean, who shifted the momentum with a third quarter interception.

The Boilermakers' converting on two-thirds of their third-down attempts was even better than the 9 of 18 mark put up by Michigan State as they handed Wisconsin its only loss early last month.

If the Badgers didn't turn things around after halftime, they were likely headed for a second road loss in Big Ten play. Fortunately, as head coach Bret Bielema said in his postgame press conference, they didn't need anything resembling superhuman effort to turn things around.

"It was just about execution," St. Jean said. "In the first half, we had people there and we weren't tackling. That was one of the things that we stressed going into this game, we knew we were going to have guys in space and we had to get them down. We weren't able to do that in the first half, and in the second half we just swarmed and kept getting the ball."

In particular, defensive end J.J. Watt pointed to the team's performance on first and second down defensively, which made third downs more difficult for Wisconsin and easier to convert for Purdue.

When they went out in the second half, the Badgers forced the Boilermakers to pick up more yardage on third down, averaging 3rd-and-5 on 10 attempts. Purdue went 3-for-10 on third down in the second half.

"When you're putting them in 3rd-and-long, you're going to give them tough situations," Watt said. "We did that well in the second half and obviously that paid off."

Injury updates

For safety Jay Valai, the bye week wasn't quite as beneficial to his health as it was for most of his teammates.

After aggravating his right calf on Wednesday, the senior further injured it Thursday, partially tearing the muscle. When the game rolled around Saturday, he was noticeably limited by the injury, especially in the first half.

Eventually, the coaches were forced to sub Shelton Johnson in for Valai.

"Being a senior, you always want to be on the field, but at that point in time, I was more hurting the team than helping the team, so I think that was a smart decision," Valai said. "It felt a little better in the second half, but it's still something I need to work on."

Amid the Badgers' troubles in the first half, Watt appeared to have suffered an injury, leaving him on the Ross-Ade Stadium turf a little longer than everyone else.

He got up and walked off under his own power, but nonetheless, provided a scare to the Wisconsin players, coaches and fans. Afterward, he expressed little concern over the shoulder injury.

"I was extended out and I dove, and my shoulder kind of clicked in and out," Watt said. "I'm feeling pretty good now. I've still got a little bit of adrenaline going, so we'll see tomorrow, but I don't see it holding me out at all."

While there was plenty to celebrate about in the second half of the 34-13 victory, Wisconsin saw center Peter Konz go down with an injury. As he walked off the field afterward, Konz appeared to be in significant pain, while using crutches and wearing a boot on his right leg.

According to Bielema, the sophomore aggravated the right ankle he injured against Ohio State, which forced senior Bill Nagy to take over at center once again.

Quotable

St. Jean on his second-half interception

"First I went to my drops and it was an out route, so I knew I wasn't able to get there. We had extra leverage on that side so I just dropped back and read the quarterback and he took me right to the ball."

Watt on second-half comeback

"It says we have some good character, we have guys who understand the situation, when we get down we can't get out. We came back in the second half and played like a first-place team plays, and that's what we need to do from here on out."

Watt on the team's first-half play

"It wasn't necessarily flat, we just didn't tackle very well on defense and didn't put together a very good half."

John Moffitt on the first half struggles

"I think we came out the first half, there were a lot of looks we didn't see [before], we weren't executing right away, and maybe a little hangover from the two weeks off. But you don't really want to lean on that excuse, because you've got to be ready to play at all times."

Moffitt on the change after halftime

"Obviously, the second half, the execution was there, we were doing the right things, the defense looked great and that made the difference."

Moffitt on what the comeback says about the team

"Guys didn't quit. The guys fight to the end and that's what we need because the game's not over until the last second ticks off the clock and I think guys understand that."

Mike Taylor on the team's slow start

"Yeah, you could say we were flat. It took us a little while to kind of get warmed up I guess, but we came out excited in the second half and took care of business."

Antonio Fenelus on the turnovers in the second half

"It was very big. In the first half we didn't come out and do as best as we could. We got talked to after that and they just told us to go out there and just play to the best of our abilities and that's what I went out there and did."

Fenelus on getting two turnovers in one game

"It feels real good. I haven't had a pick since the third game of the season, so it feels good to be just go out there and be able to make a play on the ball."

Montee Ball on the shift in momentum

"We came in here, got our mistakes down and had a chance to talk to everybody. Coach had a chance to talk to us, and we knew we needed to come out and play Wisconsin football and we get focused because we weren't in the first half. Once we came out and we knew our assignments, we went out and did it.

"In the first half, I had to knock the dust off a bit from the bye week and we all had to. But once we came out of the locker room, we knew 'This is our half, and we've got to produce.'"

Scott Tolzien on the offense

"Offensively it was a struggle for us, and that's going to happen at times. But I thought the defense was just tremendous, especially in the second half."

Tolzien on the team's slow start

"What frustrates me is, that was one of the things that we emphasized in the bye week. We wanted to start fast because that's always a concern when you have a week off. We didn't do that."