Wisconsin’s defense did enough to keep the Badgers alive long enough for the comeback to happen.
That was the story in the Week 4 road win over No. 13 Penn State, a result that marked the biggest victory of the Luke Fickell era and opened conference play with a jolt. The offense finished the job with two straight touchdown drives in the final four minutes, but Wisconsin’s defense spent most of the afternoon dragging the game into that window in the first place.
The snap counts from Pro Football Focus show exactly how Wisconsin deployed its personnel in Beaver Stadium, and the rotation looked familiar in a lot of spots.
Up front, the Badgers again rolled with seven defensive linemen. Hammond Russell IV led the group with 31 snaps, followed by DeNigel Cooper at 24, Charles Perkins at 21, Junior Poyser at 20, Nolan Vils at 14, Dillan Johnson at 11 and Jacob Anderson at 2.
That mirrors what Wisconsin did the week before against Eastern Michigan, so this wasn’t just a one-off based on the opponent. EJ Whitlow is clearly committed to keeping that line fresh, with Russell and Cooper still carrying the heaviest load while the rest of the group continues to shuffle around behind them.
At outside linebacker, Sebastian Cheeks and Tyreese Fearbry were once again the clear top two options. Cheeks logged 58 snaps and Fearbry was right behind him at 48, with Nick Clayton up to 25, Justus Boone at 12 and Michael Garner at 3.
Fearbry, after a relatively quiet start to the season, made his presence felt against Penn State with 1.5 TFLs and a clutch pass-breakup on third and goal. Clayton also kept building momentum, setting a new career high in snaps and finishing with three pressures and two tackles.
Inside, Wisconsin tightened the rotation. Cooper Catalano played all 67 defensive snaps, while Mason Posa was on the field for 66.
Jon Jon Kamara saw 26 snaps, Aaron Witt played 3 and Thomas Heiberger just 1. The Badgers spent plenty of time with three inside linebackers on the field - Posa, Catalano and Kamara - and Catalano never left the field.
Posa missed only one play. Heiberger, who had been involved more heavily in the first two games, was barely part of the plan this time.
The cornerback group stayed steady as well. Javan Robinson was on the field for 66 snaps and turned in one of the best games by a Wisconsin cornerback in recent memory.
Jai’mier Scott played 42 snaps, Bryce West had 39 and Eric Fletcher Jr. saw 23. Robinson was off the field for just one play, while Scott and Fletcher continued to rotate, with Scott still clearly the top option opposite Robinson.
At safety, Matt Jung and Marvin Burks Jr. handled nearly everything. Jung played all 67 snaps, and Burks was close behind at 60. Cairo Skanes dropped to just 7 snaps after playing more than 20 in each of the previous two weeks, and Carson Van Dinter remained out of the mix with 1 snap.
The numbers back up what the game showed: Wisconsin leaned on its core defenders, kept the rotation tight in key spots and found enough stops to give the offense a chance to finish the comeback.
In Other News...
Luke Fickell Knows Wisconsin Cant Keep Winning Like This
Wisconsin came away with a huge win over Penn State, but the film gave Luke Fickell plenty to worry about afterward. The Badgers survived despite losing the turnover battle 3-1, with quarterback Colton Joseph throwing all three interceptions, and they also had to scrape by on the ground in a game where the rushing edge was razor-thin. Fickell made it clear the result mattered, but the formula did not look like one Wisconsin can lean on for long.
The bigger concern is sustainability. Wisconsin finished with only a one-yard edge in rushing yardage and was outperformed when the quarterback run game was stripped out, a sign the offense still has work to do if it wants to control games instead of just hang around in them. Fickell pointed to ball security and the rushing attack as the areas that have to improve moving forward, which is a fair reminder that even a win like this can feel more like a warning than a breakthrough. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsins Two LA Matchups Suddenly Carry Very Different Threats
With Wisconsin working through a demanding Big Ten slate, the trip out to Los Angeles is starting to look less like a single swing through two marquee programs and more like two games with very different levels of danger. The Badgers already have a tough one looming against No. 14 Iowa, and now the other West Coast stops are taking on new meaning as the conference race tightens.
UCLA has surged to 4-0 under new coach Bob Chesney and earned a spot in the Top 25 behind strong play on both sides of the ball, while USC remains a far more complicated read under Lincoln Riley. The Trojans have been drawing criticism for their defense and the fallout from a controversial player incident, and with Washington, Penn State and Wisconsin all on the schedule, the pressure around that matchup is only growing. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Now Has A Chance Fans Have Been Waiting On
Wisconsins win over No. 13 Penn State gave the Badgers a resume-building result and pushed them to 3-1, but it still was not enough to get them into the AP Top 25. They landed at No. 26, just outside the poll, which leaves them right on the doorstep of the kind of national recognition fans have been waiting to see again.
Michigan State comes to Madison next, and Wisconsin is favored to handle the Spartans at home. A victory would give the Badgers another chance to strengthen their case and possibly crack the Top 25, turning last weeks breakthrough into something even bigger as the season starts to take shape. [Read more 🡒]