The Wisconsin Badgers took the Big Ten West Division championship, an 11th consecutive win over their most hated rival and a big axe out of Camp Randall on Saturday, defeating Minnesota 34-24. Heisman Trophy candidate Melvin Gordon carried the ball 29 times for 151 yards and a score and caught a second touchown before leaving the game late with a minor ankle injury. Wisconsin quarterback Joel Stave was 11-of-18 passing for 215 yards and two scores, and backup halfback Corey Clement ran seven times for 89 yards and a crucial score.
Minnesota vs. Wisconsin final score: Badgers win Big Ten West and Paul Bunyan’s Axe, 34-24
The Gophers were game, but ran out of gas late, in the 124th edition of college football’s oldest continuous rivalry.
Minnesota (8-4, 5-3 Big Ten) was led by halfback David Cobb, who ran 25 times for 118 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Maxx Williams led the Gophers with 53 yards receiving, with all 53 coming on one fourth-quarter reception. Quarterback Mitch Leidner struggled through the air, but ran for 54 yards and two touchdowns.
After falling behind 17-3 early in the second quarter, the Badgers (10-2, 7-1 Big Ten) methodically wore down the Minnesota defense. A Melvin Gordon touchdown catch narrowed the Minnesota lead to seven, and a late David Cobb fumble allowed the Badgers to kick a field goal in the last play before halftime and steal momentum heading into the second half.
By the middle of the third quarter, the pounding of Wisconsin’s running game and efficient play action passing from Joel Stave left the Gophers incapable of resistance. A Corey Clement 28-yard touchdown run finally gave the Badgers the lead with just over six minutes left in the third quarter, and Gordon’s second touchdown -- this one on a one-yard plunge -- extended the lead to 10 points. While the Gophers responded with a Mitch Leidner touchdown run, a six-play Badger drive ended in Stave’s second touchdown throw of the day, taking the lead back to 10 points and ending any chance of a Minnesota comeback.
With the win, the Badgers take Paul Bunyan’s Axe for the 11th straight year and 18th time in the last 20 seasons. Of equal importance, the Badgers punch their ticket for the Big Ten Championship Game against Ohio State next week. A win there would give the Badgers their fourth Big Ten title in the last five years, making them the first team outside the Big Two to accomplish that feat since Minnesota won four titles between 1937-1941.
Three Things We Learned
1. Wisconsin is still king of the Big Ten West hill. The Badgers went to the first two Big Ten title games under the old Legends/Leaders format, representing the erstwhile eastern Leaders division and winning two titles. Last year’s game matched two teams now in the Big Ten East, Michigan State and Ohio State, leaving the race for the new Big Ten West title wide open.
Despite an inexplicable loss to Northwestern, Wisconsin entered the final three weeks of the regular season facing three de facto elimination games. The Badgers destroyed Nebraska and outlasted Iowa to set up the division finale on Saturday, then bludgeoned Minnesota to a slow death. In two of the three games, the Badgers found themselves down 17-3. They won both with a methodical, grinding running attack and timely passing from Joel Stave, re-establishing themselves as the Kings of the West.
2. ... But Minnesota is almost there. Jerry Kill’s team was picked fifth in the Big Ten West, and chosen by exactly nobody to win the division. And while the Gophers suffered their own inexplicable loss (at Illinois) along the way, they certainly acquitted themselves well in a dominant win over Iowa and a nailbiter at Nebraska. They were not intimidated by Memorial Stadium, and embraced the bright lights of Saturday night better than most. If there is any program in the Big Ten West that looks prepared to challenge Wisconsin in 2015, it’s far more likely the Gophers than the floundering Hawkeyes or Huskers.
3. Yes, you might need a forward pass to win. The eventual downfall of Minnesota, as many expected, was in the passing game. Quarterback Mitch Leidner finished just 5-of-18 passing for 95 yards. Wisconsin’s first touchdown of the fourth quarter, extending the lead to double-digits for the first time, was effectively the dagger in the Gophers’ Big Ten title hopes. Yes, David Cobb was great, and Leidner was effective on the ground, but Minnesota’s style made a comeback against the equally run-proficient Badgers nearly impossible.
See More:
