UW 17, Iowa 9: Badgers claw past Hawkeyes
Iowa City, Iowa — Paul Chryst saw his Wisconsin football team pen the first chapter in what could turn out to be a classic: How The Big Ten West Was Won.
Chapter 1 got off to a slow start and at times slowed to a crawl Saturday at Kinnick Stadium.
Yet with UW’s defense battling through injuries to two more starters and Chryst using both quarterbacks, the 10th-ranked Badgers were able to grind out a 17-9 victory over Iowa in front of a sellout crowd of 70,585.
UW (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) ended a two-game skid and set up what will likely be another top-10 battle next week in Madison.
The Badgers host No. 9 Nebraska (7-0, 4-0) at 6 p.m. Saturday.
BOX SCORE: Wisconsin 17, Iowa 9
UW CHAT: Jeff Potrykus, 7 p.m. Monday
SUMMARY: How they scored
Iowa (5-3, 3-2) suffered its third home loss of the season, the others coming to North Dakota State and Northwestern.
“Really proud of those kids and how they persevered and kept playing," Chryst said. "They did it together. We knew it was a good team we were facing and your hope is to make it a four-quarter game.”
UW didn't put the game away until the final minute largely because the offense failed to maximize scoring drives. Andrew Endicott missed two of three field-goal attempts and tailback Corey Clement lost a fumble near the Iowa goal line, with the Hawkeyes recovering the ball for a touchback.
Despite using several combinations on the offensive line, the Badgers got just enough points and relied on an injury-depleted defense to do the rest.
UW started the game without nose tackle Olive Sagapolu (arm), lost cornerback Derrick Tindal (leg) in the second quarter and saw linebacker Jack Cichy suffer a left-shoulder injury late in the first half. Cichy wore a brace to start the second half but was playing with one arm and finally came out midway through the final quarter. He still finished with a team-high 10 tackles.
Injuries mount but UW defense holds strong
"As a defense, we want that mind-set, that it’s on us," Cichy said. "We feed off that. We like that."
The Hawkeyes, who rushed 53 times for 365 yards and four touchdowns one week earlier in a 49-35 victory at Purdue, were held to 83 yards on 27 carries on Saturday. Akrum Wadley was held to 44 yards on 10 carries; LeShun Daniels managed 35 yards on 10 carries.
UW outside linebacker Vince Biegel, who missed the previous two games after undergoing foot surgery, expected that type of performance.
"We have a great front seven," said Biegel, who had just one tackle and saluted the work of Conor Sheehy and freshman Garrett Rand in replacing Sagapolu. "We have guys who are stingy (against) the run. We have guys who are tough."
Iowa entered the game converting 40% of its third-down chances. UW held the Hawkeyes to 2 of 13 Saturday, a conversion rate of 15.4%.
"We want to be tough on third downs and our defensive coordinator puts a big emphasis all week on third downs," Biegel said. "And I really think it shows on Saturday, the attention to detail."
Notes: UW's Endicott left kicking himself
The UW staff entered the game intending to get Bart Houston at least one series in relief of starter Alex Hornibrook. He capped a 58-yard drive with a 17-yard pass to tight end Troy Fumagalli to give UW a 7-0 lead in the second quarter and finished 4 of 6 for 59 yards. Houston played one series in the second half but that ended with a UW punt in the fourth quarter.
Hornibrook directed a 62-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter to help UW take a 14-6 lead. Hornibrook’s 57-yard bomb to freshman Quintez Cephus set up Corey Clement’s 1-yard run. Hornibrook finished 11 of 19 for 197 yards.
Clement overcame the costly fumble at the goal line and finished with 134 yards and a touchdown on 35 carries. His 34-yard run with 3 minutes 41 seconds left, on third and 1, gave UW a first down at the Iowa 37.
That led to a 36-yard field goal by Endicott and a 17-6 lead with 1:24 left. His misses came from 32 and 52 yards.
Iowa's Desmond King returned the ensuing kickoff 77 yards to the UW 23. C.J. Beathard appeared to hit tight end Noah Fant for a 7-yard score with 48 seconds left, but the replay official ruled the ball hit the ground in the end zone. Iowa then settled for a 25-yard field goal by Keith Duncan with 43 seconds left.
The Hawkeyes attempted an onside kick, but Ron Colluzzi's kick bounced out of bounds and UW took over at its 45.
Game over.
"I know they’re awesome and they showed it again this week," Michael Deiter, who played left guard and center Saturday, said of his teammates on defense. "For them to go out and hold them to nine points with key guys missing, it is clutch.
"We needed those guys and they came up huge."