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Badgers Fold at Indiana By BigE |
IdataSports.com Sports Staff Writer
BigE@idatasports.com
Posted Wed Oct 16 10:22:48 2002
The Wisconsin Badgers blew a 19 point second half lead and lost 32-29 to the underdog
Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. After starting 5-0 in the non-conference
part of the schedule, the Badgers dropped their first two games of the Big Ten season
and are essentially out of the picture for the conference title.
The Badgers got on the board early with a 34-yard field goal after Hoosier running back
Yamar Washington fumbled on Indiana's first offensive play. The Hoosiers followed with
a drive of their own that eventually stalled at the Badgers 15-yard line, and ended
with a 32-yard field goal to tie the score at 3-3.
The Badgers then sustained a 12 play, 70-yard drive, that resulted in another field goal
to make it 6-3. The drive stalled when Brooks Bollinger overthrew Brandon Williams on a
quick slant on third and 7 from the Hoosier 9-yard line.
The Hoosiers then took the ball and marched 91 yards in 9 plays, ending the drive with a
4-yard touchdown pass from Gibran Hamdan to tailback Brian Lewis.
With the Hoosiers leading 10-6, the Badgers offense failed to get on track. Again the
Badgers drove into Indiana territory, only to settle for a Mike Allen 44-yard field goal
to make it 10-9.
After stopping the Hoosiers offense late in the first half, Bollinger went back to work,
hitting freshman Jonathan Orr in the back of the end zone for a touchdown to make it
16-10. That touchdown came on a third and 3 from the Indiana 23, and completed a 5-play,
64-yard drive.
The game looked as if it would become a blowout after the Badgers took their opening
drive of the third quarter, 85 yards in 12 plays, and finished with an 8-yard scamper
by Anthony Davis for the score. Bollinger was sacked on the two-point conversion making
it a 22-10 game.
On the Hoosiers next offensive series, safety Jim Leonhard picked off Indiana's Hamdan and
returned it 23 yards to the Indiana 8. It took the Badgers two plays to score, with
freshman Dwayne Smith walking in from one yard out to make it 29-10.
The Badgers had a firm hold on the game at this point, but the Hoosiers offense finally
got on the board. It took the Hoosiers only 3:29 to score, a screen pass from Hamdan
to Courtney Roby, who raced 31 yards for the score making it 29-17.
The Hoosiers then drove 74 yards in 10 plays, scoring on a 4-yard pass from Hamdan
to Aaron Halterman to make it 29-24. Again, the Hoosiers used only 4 minutes on this
long drive.
With the Badgers becoming conservative and predictable on offense, they were unable
to get anything else going in the second half. And the Hoosiers took advantage, going
on their third drive of more than 70 yards in the second half.
On second and 10 from the Badgers 20, Hamdan dropped back and threw a bullet to Glenn
Johnson who went over B.J. Tucker to snare it for the score to make it 30-29. The
Hoosiers added the two-point conversion to make it 32-29.
The Badgers had 2:16 left for their final drive, but they were unable to mount a
serious comeback. This lose was a huge disappointment for the Badgers, who just saw
their chances of a Big Ten Championship go out the window.
Things don't get much easier as the Ohio State Buckeyes invade Madison this week,
and they bring with them a gaudy 7-0 record. The Badgers will have their hands full,
but if they stop the run, they may have a chance to upset the Buckeyes. There's only
one problem, the Badgers haven't done that all year.
- BigE
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