Bryan Jackson made his old school pay, and Wisconsin rode that moment all the way to a 24-7 stunner over No. 16 USC on Saturday night in Madison.
The Southern California transfer found the end zone in the first half against the Trojans, giving the Badgers a lead they would never surrender and helping Wisconsin collect its second win of the year over a ranked opponent. The Badgers also beat then-No.
13 Penn State 24-20 on Sept. 26.
Jackson, who spent the last two seasons at USC, scored on a 5-yard run with less than two minutes remaining in the first half to put Wisconsin ahead 10-7. It was his first touchdown since joining the Badgers.
Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell said the decision to give Jackson a shot against UCLA was the right one. Jackson did not play last week in Wisconsin's loss at UCLA.
“The situation is pretty special,” Fickell said about the transfer's performance. “Sometimes you've just got to give guys greater opportunities when the game's on the line. He showed us something tonight that we thought maybe he had.”
The Badgers kept building from there. Colton Joseph hit Chris Brooks Jr. for a 16-yard touchdown on fourth-and-2 in the third quarter to stretch the lead to 17-7, and Wisconsin's defense kept USC from ever finding a real answer.
Joseph finished 12 of 14 for 58 yards through the air and added 32 rushing yards on 12 carries. Abu Sama III led Wisconsin on the ground with 16 carries for 71 yards.
One of the biggest defensive plays came from Junior Poyser, who blocked a 44-yard field goal try late in the third quarter.
USC never got its offense rolling. Jayden Maiava threw two interceptions in the first half, adding to a season that had featured only three picks on 224 throws entering the game. He finished 21 of 37 for 190 yards and a touchdown.
The Trojans also had nothing going on the ground, finishing with 25 carries for minus-17 yards rushing.
Wisconsin's defense set the tone early, limiting Southern California to 92 yards in the first half and forcing two turnovers.
Afterward, USC coach Lincoln Riley didn't sugarcoat it.
“We flat out didn't play good enough on any of the three sides of the ball," Riley said. "We didn't coach good enough and we made critical errors on the road against a good team that you can't make. There were some moments of good, but we couldn't sustain it and grab momentum."
USC is home next Saturday against No. 3 Ohio State, while Wisconsin heads to No. 15 Iowa.
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