2010 Wisconsin Badgers football team


The 2010 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Badgers, led by fifth-year head coach Bret Bielema, were members of the Big Ten Conference and played their home games at Camp Randall Stadium. They finished the season 11–2, 7–1 in the Big Ten to be crowned Big Ten co-champions along with Michigan State. Due to being ranked the highest of the three schools in the BCS rankings at the end of the season, the Badgers earned the conference's automatic bid to the Rose Bowl, where they were defeated 21–19 by TCU.

Schedule

Rankings

Roster

Regular season

UNLV

San Jose State

Arizona State

A blocked PAT was the difference in a crazy game in Camp Randall Stadium. Both Arizona State and Wisconsin were undefeated heading into this game, Arizona State having beaten a pair of FCS teams and Wisconsin having beaten UNLV and San Jose State. The Badgers managed to overcome a sluggish start and fended off an upset bid by the Sun Devils.
Arizona State would be marred by mistakes, committing multiple penalties on offense and defense, and Wisconsin used Arizona State's gaffes to keep themselves in the game. The Sun Devils returned a kick for a touchdown, had a very long runback on a kick to end the half, and had a punt return for a touchdown called back due to a pair of illegal blocks. Wisconsin did not commit a single turnover, and that would ultimately help to decide this game.
Wisconsin improved to 3–0 on the season, and faces FCS opponent Austin Peay next week. Arizona State, however, falls to 2–1 and will need to win 5 Pac-10 games to become bowl-eligible.

Austin Peay

Wisconsin broke the all-time record for most points scored with 70, breaking a record from the 1962 season.

Michigan State

In a matchup between undefeated teams in the Big Ten, Michigan State prevailed over the 9th ranked Badgers. Despite 3 Spartan turnovers, the Badgers were unable to come away with a road win, dropping head coach Bret Bielema to 0–2 in Spartan Stadium and 2–2 against Michigan State overall. The Spartans face their rival, the Michigan Wolverines in a crucial road contest next week, while the Badgers face longtime rival Minnesota in the battle for Paul Bunyan's Axe.

Minnesota

Wisconsin won a school-record 7th straight game over the rival Golden Gophers, dropping Tim Brewster to 0–4 against Wisconsin and improving Bret Bielema to 5–0 against Minnesota. Wisconsin did not commit a turnover for the 4th game in a row, and had two running backs with over 100 yards rushing. Minnesota has now lost 5 straight games after winning their opener against Middle Tennessee State.

Ohio State

Wisconsin stunned the top-ranked Buckeyes 31–18, their first upset of a top-ranked team since a 1981 defeat of #1 ranked Michigan. Wisconsin Senior WR David Gilreath returned the opening kick of the game for a touchdown, RB John Clay became the first running back to go over 100 yards rushing against the Buckeyes since Joe McKnight of USC in 2008, and Wisconsin's defense harried Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor all game long. The Badgers ran up 21 unanswered points in the first half before Devin Barclay of Ohio State answered with a field goal. The Buckeyes managed to get 15 more points but the Badgers iced their incredible upset of the Buckeyes with a TD run by James White and a Philip Welch field goal. The win over Ohio State is Bret Bielema's first; he was 0–3 against the Buckeyes in the previous three meetings. The loss dropped Jim Tressel to 4–4 against Wisconsin and snapped a 3-game Buckeye winning streak over the Badgers.

Iowa

11th ranked Wisconsin won a narrow 31–30 contest over the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Hawkeyes went into the half with a 13–10 lead, but the Badgers chipped away at it and took a 24–20 lead. The Hawkeyes managed a touchdown and field goal of their own to take a 30–24 lead in the 4th quarter. However, the Badgers scored the go-ahead touchdown on an 8-yard run by running back Montee Ball. With under a minute remaining, Iowa drove into Wisconsin territory on their final possession, but Iowa RB Adam Robinson was tackled before he could get out of bounds. Unable to stop the clock, Iowa ran out of time, giving Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema his first-ever road win over a ranked opponent. It was also his 3rd win over Iowa and 2nd in Iowa City, breaking a two-game Hawkeye winning streak.

Purdue

Wisconsin traveled to West Lafayette to play the Purdue Boilermakers. Purdue entered the game on a two-game losing streak, but managed to take a 10–3 lead on the Badgers before the end of the first half. An interception by Badger QB Scott Tolzien on Wisconsin's first possession of the game and a missed field goal by Wisconsin K Philip Welch helped the Boilermakers take a 10–6 lead at the half.
From there, Wisconsin took command of the game. Purdue Freshman QB Sean Robinson threw an interception on the first possession of the half that set the Badgers up with excellent field position. Badger QB Scott Tolzien capitalized on the turnover, finding freshman WR Jared Abbrederis on a 7-yard touchdown strike that gave the Badgers their first lead of the game at 13–10. After an exchange of punts, the Badgers again found the end zone on a 31-yard touchdown run by RB Montee Ball, extending their lead to 20–10. Purdue K Carson Wiggs tightened the game by kicking a field goal to cut the Badger lead 20–13. However, those would be the last points of the game for the Boilermakers. Wisconsin would get another touchdown run from Ball and an interception returned for a touchdown by CB Antonio Fenelus.
The Badgers won their fifth straight game over Purdue, and their 8th game of the season overall. They play Indiana in Camp Randall on November 13. After a 2–0 start to conference play, Purdue has lost their last three games. They play Michigan in West Lafayette, having won their last two games against the Wolverines.

Indiana

Wisconsin did not punt on any of their offensive possessions, tallied a pair of 100-yard running backs and overpowered the Indiana Hoosiers. At one point, the score was 10–10, but Wisconsin would score 7 consecutive touchdowns to take a 59–10 lead before Indiana managed to kick a field goal. The Badgers put in their backup players in the 4th Quarter, but their two backup quarterbacks managed to score a pair of touchdowns anyway.
Badger QB Scott Tolzien completed 15 passes on 18 attempts with a trio of touchdown strikes. Montee Ball's 167 rushing yards and 3 rushing touchdowns on 22 carries led Wisconsin's ground game, and his teammate James White ran for 144 yards on 19 carries with two touchdowns of his own. Wisconsin S Aaron Henry returned an interception for a touchdown late in the game to put Wisconsin up by a commanding margin and icing their win over the Hoosiers.
Wisconsin's 83 points against Indiana easily broke their previous record 70 points scored against Austin Peay, which was set earlier this season. They play Michigan in Ann Arbor next week.

Michigan

Wisconsin would lead from start to finish of this game, shutting out the powerful Michigan Wolverine offense in the first half. The Badgers incredibly gained 380 yards of total offense in the first half. Wisconsin would close out the Wolverines from there; Michigan managed to cut Wisconsin's lead to just 10 points with a pair of back to back touchdowns. However, Wisconsin answered with a touchdown of its own. Michigan would score another 3rd-quarter touchdown, but the 4th quarter was where the Badgers took this game, outscoring the Wolverines 17–7 in the final 15:00.
Wisconsin running back Montee Ball ran for 4 touchdowns on 30 carries; his 194 yards paced a powerful Badger rushing attack. Badger QB Scott Tolzien completed 14 passes on 15 attempts for 201 yards as the Badgers diced up Michigan's vulnerable secondary. Wisconsin RB James White would run for 161 yards of his own and a pair of touchdowns; he and Ball combined for 6 rushing touchdowns and well over 300 yards of total offense.
Denard Robinson became the first QB to run for over 1,500 yards in a season, but he was unable to spark the Wolverines to a possible upset of a top ten Wisconsin team.
With the 48–28 win, Wisconsin won in Michigan Stadium for the first time since the 1994 season. Wisconsin also scored more points in the game than they had ever scored in any single game against the Wolverines prior to this date. The 10–1 Badgers are now looking at a potential Rose Bowl berth and BCS game, but must play a still-dangerous Northwestern Wildcats team in Camp Randall next weekend.

Northwestern

Wisconsin led by double digits just minutes into the game and never let go, blowing out the Wildcats en route to their eleventh victory of the season. Aided by 7 Northwestern turnovers, the Badgers played some of their best football of the season on Senior Day.
Wisconsin QB Scott Tolzien, who led the nation in passing completion percentage in the regular season, had an excellent game in his final home start. He completed 15 passes on 19 attempts for 230 yards with 4 touchdown passes. Tolzien was not sacked once in the game, and left to a standing ovation.
Wisconsin's running back duo of Montee Ball and James White tore apart Northwestern's defense on the ground, with 300+ combined rushing yards. James White eclipsed the 1,000 yards rushing mark for the season. Montee Ball's 4 touchdown runs paced the Badger ground game and he ran 20 times for 178 yards on the day.
The powerful Badger offensive line had one of its best games of the season, opening holes for the running game and protecting Scott Tolzien. Bill Nagy, John Moffitt, and Gabe Carimi put together fantastic games in their final home start. Badger TE Lance Kendricks caught 4 passes for 80 yards with an acrobatic touchdown catch, and WR David Gilreath scored his only receiving touchdown in the regular season on an 18-yard strike from Tolzien. Nick Toon caught a pair of touchdown passes as well.
Due to wins by Ohio State and Michigan State, Wisconsin's win over Northwestern resulted in a tie between the teams with a 7–1 overall record. The Big Ten championship is thus split amongst the three teams, with the highest ranked team in the BCS going to the Rose Bowl.

TCU–Rose Bowl

Both teams scored double digit points in the first quarter, a Rose Bowl record. The game was close throughout, and was not decided until Wisconsin failed to convert a two-point conversion late in the fourth quarter to tie the game. It was the second time the game was decided by two points, joining the 1966 game.

Regular starters

PositionPlayer
QuarterbackScott Tolzien
Running backJohn Clay
Wide receiverNick Toon
Wide receiverDavid Gilreath
Tight endLance Kendricks
Tight endJake Byrne
Left TackleGabe Carimi
Left GuardJohn Moffitt
CenterPeter Konz
Right GuardKevin Zeitler
Right TackleRicky Wagner
KickerPhilip Welch

PositionPlayer
Defensive endLouis Nzegwu
Defensive tacklePatrick Butrym
Defensive tackleEthan Hemer/Jordan Kohout
Defensive endJ. J. Watt
Outside LinebackerBlake Sorensen
Middle LinebackerCulver St. Jean
Outside LinebackerMike Taylor
CornerbackNiles Brinkley
Strong SafetyJay Valai
Free SafetyAaron Henry
CornerbackAntonio Fenelus
PunterBrad Nortman

2010 stats

Passing

Note: G = Games played; COMP = Completions; ATT = Attempts; COMP % = Completion percentage; YDS = Passing yards; TD = Passing touchdowns; INT = Interceptions; EFF = Passing efficiency
Pos.PlayerGCOMPATTCOMP %YDSTDINTEFF
QBJon Budmayr381080.013410225.6
QBScott Tolzien1319426672.92,459166165.9

Rushing

Note: G = Games played; ATT = Attempts; YDS = Yards; AVG = Average yard per carry; LG = Longest run; TD = Rushing touchdowns
Pos.PlayerGATTYDSAVGLGTD
WRJared Abbrederis133279.0170
WRIsaac Anderson13420.550
RBMontee Ball121639966.14418
QBJon Budmayr3210.530
RBJohn Clay111871,0125.44014
FBBradie Ewing133196.381
WRDavid Gilreath117679.6160
TELance Kendricks132−10−5.000
TERob Korslin13242.030
PBrad Nortman1222814.0170
QBNate Tice211717.0171
QBScott Tolzien1330−30−1.090
WRNick Toon92105.0120
RBJames White121561,0526.76614
RBKyle Zuleger117172.470

Receiving

Note: G = Games played; REC = Receptions; YDS = Yards; AVG = Average yard per catch; LG = Longest catch; TD = Receiving touchdowns
Pos.PlayerGRECYDSAVGLGTD
WRJared Abbrederis132028914.4743
WRIsaac Anderson13242339.7300
RBMontee Ball12161288.0140
TEJake Byrne135438.6161
RBJohn Clay11199.090
WRJeff Duckworth533210.7190
FBBradie Ewing1088210.2282
WRDavid Gilreath112337016.1451
WRKyle Jefferson846516.2210
TELance Kendricks134366315.4345
TEJacob Pedersen13813216.5332
WRNick Toon93645912.8303
RBJames White1211888.0260

Kick and punt returning

Note: G = Games played; PR = Punt returns; PYDS = Punt return yards; PLG = Punt return long; KR = Kick returns; KYDS = Kick return yards; KLG = Kick return long; TD = Total return touchdowns
Pos.PlayerGPRPYDSPLGKRKYDSKLGTotal Return TDs
WRJared Abbrederis13767253111520
LBChris Borland20001990
FBBradie Ewing13000357240
WR/KR/PRDavid Gilreath118822727659971
SAaron Henry13453300000
RBJames White1200017329310
TEBrian Wozniak70001770
RBKyle Zuleger11000236210

Kicking

Note: G = Games played; FGM = Field goals made; FGA = Field goals attempted; LG = Field goal long; XPT = Extra points made; XPT ATT = XPT attempted; TP = Total points
Pos.PlayerGFGMFGALGXPTXPT ATTTP
KAlec Lerner3000111
KPhilip Welch131722496767118

Punting

Note: G = Games played; P = Punts; YDS = Yards; AVG = Average per punt; LG = Punt long; In20 = Punts inside the 20; TB = Touchbacks
Pos.PlayerGPYDSAVGLGIn20TB
PBrad Nortman1238162342.776142

Defensive

Note: G = Games played; Solo = Solo tackles; Ast = Assisted tackles; Total = Total tackles; TFL-Yds = Tackles for loss-yards lost; Sack = Sacks; INT = Interceptions; PD = Passes defended; FF = Forced fumbles; FR = Forced recoveries
Pos.PlayerGSoloAstTotalTFL-YdsSackINTPDFFFR
LBBlake Sorensen133036661.0–20.02300
DEJ. J. Watt1342206221.0–917.01932
LBCulver St. Jean133824623.0–60.01300
LBMike Taylor122731588.0–141.02200
SAaron Henry134711580.5–10.02913
CBAntonio Fenelus134313560.0–00.041112
CBNiles Brinkley13408480.0–00.00910
DELouis Nzegwu132818467.5–193.00310
SJay Valai122517422.0–30.01410
CBDevin Smith131713301.0–10.01200
DTPatrick Butrym131216283.0–142.50100
LBKevin Claxton13717242.0–40.00000
DTJordan Kohout12616221.5–41.00000
DEDavid Gilbert13138211.5–111.50000
DTEthan Hemer131011210.5–00.00000
LBKevin Rouse10105152.0–182.00000
DTBeau Allen1369150.0–00.00000
SShelton Johnson13132150.0–00.00000
LBEthan Armstrong1386142.5–70.00001
DETyler Dippel1156112.0–71.00101
SDezmond Southward134480.0–00.00000
DLPat Muldoon133472.0–92.00100
LBChris Borland25272.0–81.00000
LBA.J. Fenton133360.0–00.00010
LBConor O'Neill124260.0–00.00200
CBMarcus Cromartie51230.0–00.00000
LBCoddye Ring-Noonan42130.0–00.00000
DLEriks Briedis103031.0–10.00000
CBAdam Hampton121120.0–00.00000

2011 NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft class

Signed undrafted free agents