Luke Fickell was poised to take control of his first and last B1G West Championship with the hardest test to the crown coming to Camp Randall. The game started with the Badgers on defense. A little bend but no break allowed the Hawkeyes to get to the Wisconsin 43. A perfect punt Tory Taylor pinned the Badgers at the four-yard line. Tanner Mordecai led the Badgers on an 83-yard drive to the Hawkeyes 13 and a fourth and one. Luke Fickell new to the B1G West didn’t realize that a field goal would probably win the game and went for it. Braelon Allen was stopped for a two-yard loss and the Hawkeyes got the ball back.
The defensive battle raged on as no team could put together a drive to get anywhere near scoring position and the only score was on an 82-yard run by Iowa’s Leshon Williams. To make matters worse Tanner Mordecai left the game after hitting his hand on a Hawkeye helmet. We later found out his hand was broken.
Braedyn Locke took over at quarterback and led the offense on two drives that ended in Nathanial Vakos field goals. That made the score 7-6 with four minutes left in the third. That was the closest Wisconsin got.
Iowa tacked on two field goals and a safety in the fourth quarter to end the game 15-6.
The Badgers offense has lost two key players in the past two games in Chaz Mellusi.
A lot of fans are upset about the season and I can’t fault them. They have every reason to be. The identity they’ve grown to know and love for the last 30 years (big beef-fed linemen leading the way for bruising backs) seems to be completely gone. Along with it 8-10 wins a year and a semi-regular trip to the B1G championship game where the winner of the East embarrasses us. Luke Fickell was brought in to remove that embarrassing loss and lead this team into a new 12-team NCAA Playoff era. We have to give him time to get players to work for his system. Firing him after this season or next will just lead to more confusion and lost years.
James