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Claiming Paul Bunyan’s Axe for the second-straight year, the Wisconsin Badgers defeated the rival Minnesota Golden Gophers, 20-17, in overtime on Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison.
The win moved to the Badgers back to .500 at 3-3.
Wisconsin, who began the season 2-0, missed out on three games this year because of coronavirus (COVID-19)-related cancelations.
Addressing the media following the Minnesota victory, two Badger redshirt seniors, safety Eric Burrell and wide receiver Jack Dunn, stated their support for the program accepting a bowl invitation.
#Badgers senior safety Eric Burrell asked about playing in a bowl game: Absolutely. We missed three games. We have to make that up.
— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) December 20, 2020
#Badgers Jack Dunn was asked about a potential bowl game. He said: If we get another game, I'm all-in.
— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) December 20, 2020
Bowl games have been kind to Wisconsin in recent years, as the program has won five of their last six trips. Their most recent experience was a loss, however, falling to the Pacific-12 Conference’s Oregon Ducks, 28-27, in the Rose Bowl on January 1.
Prior to that, the Badgers had not dropped a bowl game since the Capital One Bowl to the South Carolina Gamecocks on January 1, 2014, when Gary Andersen was still the head coach.
A graduate of Bowling Green State University, Rydquist has been contributing to Saturday Down South and Saturday Tradition since 2019. He can be found on Twitter @TeddyRydquist.