MADISON, Wis. – The veterans at the University of Wisconsin knew they had a good football team. Taking inventory at the close of fall camp, it was easy to see the Badgers had NFL-quality talent and depth throughout a roster that was a mix of two dozen seniors, multi-year starters, and vibrant youth.
So, walking off the field on October 2 with a 1-3 record and an 0-2 mark in conference didn’t make much sense.
Four games littered with a lack of production on offense, missed assignments on defense, and gaffes on special teams that weren’t habitual during training camp. The seniors still have faith but feeling self-doubt start to creep in was a natural thought.
Almost organically, the upperclassmen on the roster discussed the idea of a team forum, an airing of grievances amongst the players that affirmed they had a cohesiveness that would eventually pay dividends if everyone trusted each other.
“It was a turning point for us,” senior tackle Tyler Beach recalled. “We wanted to draw a line in the sand. We knew we were a good team. We didn’t think those losses reflected how good we were. Guys realized that.”
Heading into next Thursday’s Las Vegas Bowl against Arizona State (8-4), Wisconsin (8-4) has won seven of its last eight games with a terrific defense at the forefront and an offense that has been an important supporting cast member.
It was the exactly opposite three months earlier. The Badgers lost a winnable game to open the season against Penn State, played sloppy in a win over Eastern Michigan, and gave up 31 fourth-quarter points the week before to Notre Dame. When they followed the loss to the Irish with an embarrassing 38-17 home loss to Michigan, it became the tipping point.
The infamous “team meeting” is used a lot in sports, coming together during troubled times to try to flush out problems, finger pointing, and reasons why a team was stuck in a rut. And there was no question, Wisconsin’s start was a major pothole for players who predicted big things to the media prior to the season.
The intervention came together unsuspectedly. Safety Scott Nelson said it began with inside linebacker Mike Maskalunas texting guys to come over and hang out. Beach singled out fullback John Chenal as someone who wanted to talk things out.
Inside linebacker Jack Sanborn said the talking started in the locker room while the UW band was playing the Fifth Quarter after the Michigan debacle.
“I think it was a bunch of guys who knew what team we had, knew the potential of this team, and just wanted to win,” he recalled. “Going back to Penn State week one, I know the team we have, and I know we’re a good team. People might not have believed it at the time, especially the first four weeks of the season, but I knew if we played good football, played off each other, and played well, we could beat anyone.”
According to those at the meeting, everybody was given the opportunity to talk, no matter age or status, to share their thoughts on what was plaguing the team. Positives were shared, negatives were hashed out, and goals were reaffirmed with honestly and minimal hostility.
Beach recalled sharing his opinion that Wisconsin was a good team that was struggling to get out of its own way with inflicted wounds, missed assignments, and lacking rhythm. Nelson pointed that just because the Badgers had stubbed their toe didn’t mean they couldn’t still win their division.
“Talking about it is great, but I think taking the next step is the big thing,” Nelson said. “There was a lot of talk early on, and the meetings sound great, but it doesn’t mean anything if you don’t put it into action.”
Getting a big boost by facing a reeling Illinois program, the Badgers’ 24-0 victory was their first Big Ten road shutout since 2017. A less-than-thrilling home win over Army was next, but then the Badgers reeled off consecutive ranked victories at No.25 Purdue and against No.9 Iowa. UW’s defense delivered six sacks in each game and gave up a total of 13 rushing yards.
“The effort has always been there, and I think the resiliency has too,” Sanborn said. “After the Michigan game, in the locker room, it was win this game (at Illinois). This game is all that matters. Get a win. I knew and the team knew that you got to get a win. You get a win, you start to get a rhythm, and that can continue to lead into the next weeks.”
The offense evolved, too. Against Iowa, the Badgers balanced the pass off the run by mixing in first-down throws to prevent the Hawkeyes from stacking the box. For the next four games, Wisconsin had at least one rushing and one receiving touchdown. In UW’s victory over Northwestern, quarterback Graham Mertz completed 18 passes to nine different receivers.
Most importantly, an offensive line that began the season hesitant provided opened better holes for tailback Braelon Allen and provided better protection. In the final five games of the season, UW’s offensive line gave up only two sacks.
“We came into the Illinois game thinking, screw what everywhere else is saying about us,” Beach said. “Don’t worry if you mess up. You just want to be physical and play hard. As a line, you get caught up in everything that’s going on, from crazy pressures or the defense you’re playing. It comes down to knowing the main thing is to push guys back. Sometimes it has to just come back to that, and our mentality changed from worrying about this look or that look to just playing football.”
There has been no such meeting since UW’s seven-game winning streak ended at Minnesota, costing the Badgers a spot in the conference title game. Getting time away before the team resumed practices for the bowl, the recovery time has resulted in seniors saying the energy level at practice has been positive.
They’ve said that finishing their journey is important. While other teams have players opting out to prepare for the NFL Draft, including multiple starters for the Sun Devils, head coach Paul Chryst expects all healthy players to participate.
“The group has been consistent with who they’ve been and how they’ve approached it,” Chryst said. “Their highs aren’t too high, and their lows aren’t too low … Early this was important, and I think it’s just as important now, it’s a group that truly cares about each other. A group that truly cares and wants to be the best it can be. To do that, you got to keep working. You can’t fall into the trap.
“Things early, you can’t listen to the outside world. When it’s going good, you can’t listen to it. We know who we are. We know what we got, and we know what we need to do. They’ve done a good job focusing on that.”
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