MADISON — Wisconsin quarterback Tyler Van Dyke suffered a torn ACL during Saturday’s 42-10 loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide and will miss the remainder of the season, as first reported by Colten Bartholemew of BadgerExtra.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel confirmed it was a full tear in his right ACL. The timeline for his recovery is unclear at this time.
““We’ll get a little more clarity hopefully here soon, get an MRI and things like that. I don’t think it looks real good for us or for him,” head coach Luke Fickell said Saturday, “That’s really, really difficult because I think that he was really well-prepared and he had grown in those first few weeks and was really sharp to start that game.”
Van Dyke exited Saturday’s game in the first quarter after being tackled on a quarterback scramble. He returned to the sideline in the second half, walking with crutches and with a brace on his right knee.
Redshirt sophomore Braedyn Locke played the remainder of Saturday’s game after Van Dyke’s departure and is expected to carry out the rest of the season as Wisconsin’s starting quarterback. True freshman Mabrey Mettauer is slated as the backup moving forward.
“I think I obviously learned a lot last year, just dealing with that scenario already before," Locke said after the loss to Alabama. “I think just the experience helps, even though it was only 3.5 games. I think that it helps you as a player. It helped me today. We didn’t get the result we wanted obviously, but I've learned how to prepare as a starter in the last two years being here.”
The Badgers have a bye week before opening the Big Ten schedule on Sept. 28 at USC.
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