Wisconsin’s defense spent Saturday in control from start to finish, and the snap counts against Michigan State show just how much the Badgers leaned on their core pieces in a 31-3 win.
The result gave Wisconsin a chance to head into its bye week with momentum before the schedule stiffens at UCLA, against USC and at Iowa. On the field, though, the story was as much about rotation as it was dominance. Defensive line coach EJ Whitlow kept cycling bodies through the front, while Mike Tressel and Jack Cooper both spread snaps around enough to get a deeper look at the roster in a lopsided game.
Up front, Wisconsin again used seven defensive linemen, with Hammond Russell IV leading the group at 29 snaps and Charles Perkins right behind him at 28. Junior Poyser logged 24, Nolan Vils 23, DeNigel Cooper 22, Dillan Johnson 21 and Jacob Anderson 16.
The pattern matched what the Badgers did at Penn State, and it reinforced how committed Whitlow appears to be to constant rotation no matter the game flow. Even with all that movement, Russell, Perkins, Poyser and Cooper still sat near the top of the pecking order.
At outside linebacker, the hierarchy stayed steady. Sebastian Cheeks was on the field for 59 snaps, while Tyreese Fearbry handled 38.
Nick Clayton and Justus Boone each played 27, followed by Michael Garner at 7, Liam Danitz at 3 and Will McDonald at 3. Danitz got his first defensive snaps of the season, and McDonald returned to action for the first time since the Eastern Michigan game.
Garner’s workload has dropped sharply, too, after he played 56 snaps across the first two games and only 10 total over the last two.
Inside, Wisconsin opened things up. Mason Posa and Cooper Catalano each played 71 snaps, their highest totals of the season, as the Badgers leaned heavily on them in a comfortable win.
Jon Jon Kamara was next with 15, followed by Taylor Schaefer at 10, Thomas Heiberger at 8, Aaron Witt at 3 and Drew Braam at 1. Braam’s lone snap was his first on defense this season, while Kamara remained part of the mix even though his 15 snaps were his second-fewest of the year.
The secondary saw a similar workload split. Javan Robinson, Bryce West and Jai’mier Scott were all major parts of the plan, with Robinson matching Posa and Catalano at 71 snaps, West at 58 and Scott at 48.
Eric Fletcher added 42 and Donovan Dunmore played 3. Robinson’s total stood out because he was one of only three players on the defense to reach 71 snaps, alongside Posa and Catalano.
Fletcher’s 42 snaps were a season high, and Dunmore was back on the field for the first time since Eastern Michigan.
Safety brought the deepest rotation of the afternoon. Matt Jung led the group with 67 snaps, Marvin Burks Jr. followed with 46, and Cairo Skanes added 34, which marked a career high.
Carson Van Dinter played 12, Raphael Dunn 9, and both Matthew Traynor and Grant Dean got 3. Dean, a freshman, logged the first defensive snaps of his career, while Traynor saw his first action of the season.
For Wisconsin, the numbers tell the same story as the scoreboard: a defense in command, a staff willing to rotate, and several younger pieces getting meaningful run in a game that never really got away from the Badgers.
In Other News...
Luke Fickell Just Said What Wisconsin Fans Wanted To Hear
After Wisconsins 31-3 win over Michigan State, the Badgers headed into their bye week at 4-1 overall and 2-0 in Big Ten play with a little more clarity than they had a few weeks ago. One of the biggest takeaways from the victory was the offensive line shuffle, and Luke Fickell pointed to Ryan Corys work at center in place of the injured Austin Kawecki as a promising sign for a group that has been trying to settle in and protect the offenses rhythm.
Fickell also made it clear the Badgers are treating the run of recent success as more than just a couple of good Saturdays. He talked about the teams focus, leadership and momentum, the kind of language fans want to hear in early October when the season starts to show who is ready to separate from the pack. With the bye week here, Wisconsin has a chance to build on that momentum, but the bigger question is how much of this sharpened identity carries forward once the games resume. [Read more 🡒]
Luke Fickells Bold O-Line Shakeup May Have Fixed Wisconsins Run Game
Luke Fickells decision to shake up the offensive line paid off in a way Wisconsin has been waiting to see. By moving Kevin Heywood into the starting left tackle spot and benching PJ Wilkins, the Badgers got their best five linemen on the field for a unit that looked far more settled against Michigan State, protecting the quarterback without allowing a sack and opening enough space for a rushing attack that finally found some rhythm.
The move was about more than one game, too. Fickell framed it as a push for Wilkins as much as a reward for Heywood, a reminder that competition still matters up front for a program built around physical football. If the new alignment can hold up, Wisconsin may have found a cleaner path to the kind of run game it wants, even if the long-term answer at left tackle still leaves one important question hanging. [Read more 🡒]
Luke Fickell Just Framed Wisconsins Fast Start The Way Fans Needed
Wisconsins 4-1 start has given the program some early breathing room, and Luke Fickell sounded like a coach who knows it. The Badgers have already flashed the kind of convincing performance that can steady a season, including a 31-3 win over Michigan State, but Fickell made clear he views the first month as more of a checkpoint than a destination. With a bye week in hand before UCLA, the timing gives Wisconsin a chance to reset while still carrying momentum into the Big Ten stretch ahead.
Fickell also pointed to the bigger picture inside the program, where the culture change he has been pushing remains a work in progress. Part of that next step involves continued growth from quarterback Colton Joseph, whose development matters as the schedule tightens and the stakes rise. The Badgers have reason to feel good about where they stand, but the message coming out of Madison is that the real test is still in front of them. [Read more 🡒]