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Wisconsin players continue campaign for Jim Leonhard, explain importance of win over Nebraska for interim coach
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Wisconsin didn’t start out hot on the road against Nebraska in Week 12, but the Badgers were able to complete an epic comeback for the 15-14 win. This is a win that pushes a lot of momentum for interim head coach Jim Leonhard to become the future full-time head coach, just like his players want.
The Badgers found themselves in a 14-3 deficit going into the fourth quarter as the offense struggled by accounting for 199 total yards and a turnover. In the fourth quarter, the Badgers accumulated 119 total yards and 2 scores, including the game-winning rushing touchdown from quarterback Graham Mertz with 35 seconds left in the game.
Leonhard has accumulated a 4-2 as the interim coach of Wisconsin after the program dismissed Paul Chryst after a 2-3 start to the season. Leonhard’s support to become the permanent head coach of the Badgers continues to be more vocal from the players.
After the game safety John Torchio and wide receiver Skyler Bell discussed their desire for Leonhard to remain as head coach after the 2022 season. According to Torchio, the players feel the weight of needing to win for Leonhard since Leonhard has yet to be hired.
As for Bell, he said Wisconsin “can just give (Leonhard) the job already.” Bell also questioned who the players can talk to about the hiring process, noting Leonhard “has shown he can do it.”
#Badgers John Torchio said — w/out prompting — this was a big W for Leonhard. Why? Torchio: They haven’t hired him yet. Why? We need to win. We know that weight. The players feel that. Absolutely."
— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) November 19, 2022
OK, here is #Badgers Skyler Bell on importance of victory for JL: "It means a lot. They can just give him the job already. We were just talking about it in the locker room. Who do we have to talk to for him to get the job? Because he has shown that he can do it."
— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) November 19, 2022