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Wisconsin and Northwestern met on Saturday in a series that has produced some close moments in recent history. While this year’s game began in a tight fashion, it would not end that way.
After a scoreless first quarter, Wisconsin would rattle off 14 answered points to take a clean lead into halftime. By the time the end of the 3rd quarter rolled around, it was clear the Badgers were going to finish this one in a big win.
When the final whistle blew, the Badgers had limited Northwestern to 209 yards of offense and a horrific 2-for-14 outing on 3rd downs. The Wildcats managed just 9 first downs all game long as the Badgers cruised to the 23-3 win.
Here are the key takeaways from the game:
Special teams looms large
We are just one week removed from Northwestern kicker/punter Luke Akers taking home weekly B1G honors. However, he had an afternoon to forget against Wisconsin.
As a kicker, Akers was just 1-for-3 on field goal tries as the Wildcats mightily struggled offensively. One of Akers’ kicks was blocked, and that was a problem for a Northwestern offense looking to get just enough to keep this game locked in a tight affair all game long.
As a punter, Akers had another kick blocked and was consistently under fire from the Badger special teams. Considering Northwestern needed every little advantage to keep things close, it was a terrible performance from the unit as a whole at an inopportune time.
Tawee Walker continues emergence for Wisconsin
Tawee Walker was not scoring hat tricks this week. However, that doesn’t take away from what was another impressive outing for the Badger RB.
Walker ended the day with 23 carries for 126 yards and added 2 catches for 7 yards in the receiving game. Overall, that’s 5.5 yards per carry for Walker in another efficient outing from the backfield.
Since assuming the lead role for the Badgers, Walker has at least 94 yards in 3 straight games and back-to-back games of 100+ rushing yards. It’s probably no coincidence that Wisconsin has played its best football of the year in that span.
Wisconsin streaking
Speaking of playing your best football, Wisconsin opened the season 2-2 across its first 4 games. The Badgers were averaging just 21.5 points per game in that stretch while struggling to put teams away and maintain momentum in the 2nd half of outings.
Since then, the Badgers have flipped things around. Wisconsin has won 3 straight while averaging 39 points per game and allowing just 16 points total. The emergence of Tawee Walker in the backfield has seemingly unlocked the offense while the defense has played much better.
Can Wisconsin keep things rolling? That will be a challenge with the level of competition stepping up next week.
From here, the Badgers will face Penn State, Iowa and Oregon in their next 3 games. While 2 of those matchups come in Madison, it will take a big swing from Wisconsin to keep the good times rolling.
Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.