We all saw the devastation that the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes unleashed in Madison against the Wisconsin Badgers on Saturday afternoon, so I won’t mess around here with window dressing or platitudes. It
was a train wreck, and I’ll get right to the carnage.
Offense
While I built in a bit of margin here because the Badgers played the No. 1 defense in college football, that doesn’t excuse getting shut out at home for a second consecutive week.
Wisconsin’s longest play of the day came on a fake punt that Luke Fickell didn’t even call.
Five words sum things up: Unimaginative. Ultra-Conservative. Timid. Overmatched. Flaccid.
Grade: F
Defense
Seeing 34 points for Ohio State seems, on the surface, like a win of sorts, and the Badgers’ run defense was solid all day.
But Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin simply did whatever he wanted with almost zero resistance from the Badgers’ secondary to the tune of 36/42 for 393 yards and 4 touchdowns. Yeesh.
Grade: D+
Special Teams
Faint praise, yes, but this was the best unit of the day for Wisconsin. Potential second-half of-the-season MVP punter Sean West averaged 56.2 per punt and executed Wisconsin’s longest run of the day on a 20-yard fake kick where he hilariously called his own number.
Grade: B
Coaching
While the team showed more fight on defense than it had against Iowa, the overall effort and game plan were shockingly pedestrian, as if Fickell was more than happy to lose by 34 points.
Training 17-0 and with plenty of time before the half to try and cut into the lead, Fickell/Grimes chose three straight runs up the middle. It was a disgusting white flag and worthy of each and every boo that it generated as the clock expired for halftime.
How an Athletic Director and Chancellor can watch what Fickell has done this season and still keep him employed is borderline shocking.
Grade: F
Overall
This is the worst Wisconsin Football team in 35 years, and a night road game against the No. 6 Oregon Ducks on Saturday is going to get really fugly.
Grade: D
