In the first game of the 2024 season, Wisconsin football had to scratch and claw all night. After falling behind 14-13 in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, the Badgers were able to score the final 15 points and beat the Western Michigan Broncos. The Wisconsin football offense generated over 300 yards of total offense and averaged over four yards a carry on the ground. Overall, it wasn’t an overly optimistic night. Here are some takeaways from the first game of the season.
Wisconsin Football Has a Really Good Running Back Duo
It is almost impossible to replace how important Braelon Allen was the last three seasons. The stats may not have always showed it, but the offense was at their best when he was playing well.
Wisconsin football was able to grab senior Tawee Walker out of the transfer portal to play some of the Allen role. I thought Walker played really well after recording 15 carries for 66 yards and a touchdown. Senior Chez Mellusi finished the night with 74 yards on 19 carries and a score too.
Any time you have a solid running back duo, it helps on nights like tonight and throughout the season. I feel like Wisconsin football has another running back duo they can rely on.
The Wisconsin Football Defensive Line Appears to be an Issue Again
Losing James Thompson Jr is a big loss for this Wisconsin football defense. It was clear after one game. The defensive line and linebackers did not get to Hayden Wolff virtually all night after recording only one sack. Wolff was 12 for 18 and 141 yards only, but was never under consistent pressure.
The front seven was the group that Luke Fickell attacked in the transfer portal. It’s going to take some time, but it was not a promising start. However, I thought the speed of the linebackers were there. The only sack of the game did come from defensive lineman Elijah Hills. He should be getting a ton of snaps moving forward.
There is More Questions Than Answers
The first year in the Luke Fickell era was not what most fans, including myself expected. I think fans got over it and accepted it near the end of the season. Once you get into year two with a coaching staff, there isn’t much room for excuses.
If you remember the Buffalo game last year, offensive coordinator Phil Longo was conservative the whole game with a new quarterback and new receivers. While tonight the offense had a new starting quarterback, the receivers were essentially the same as last season. It was not a good night from Phil Longo in my opinion.
It’s only been 14 games, but this is not the offense Wisconsin football fans were expecting. The Badgers offense took next to no shots down the field. Tyler Van Dyke was careless with the ball at times and got away with a handful of what should have been interceptions. This is a very good receiving group led by Will Pauling. There is no reason he should have only had 60 yards tonight.
I did like the drives where the Wisconsin football offense had 44 plays in three first half drives. However, they only had 10 points to show for it. I don’t think last year’s team could do that, but it doesn’t matter how many plays you have when you can’t put the ball in the end zone.
On the positive side, I thought the defense was pretty solid as a whole. Seven of the 14 points were a result of a fake field goal by Western Michigan, The other touchdown was a long drive headlines by a few missed tackles. It did take the Broncos four attempts at the one yard line to get in the end zone.
The Badgers are not winning many games the way they played tonight. With Alabama coming into town in two weeks and a tough Big Ten schedule, there is a lot of things this Wisconsin football team needs to sharpen up on. There will definitely be a lot of questions from fans this week.
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