Wisconsin’s offense never found a pulse in Iowa City, and the snap counts told the same story as the scoreboard in a 30-0 loss to Iowa. The Badgers were blanked for the second straight year by one of their biggest rivals, and this time the coaching staff even dipped into a new option at quarterback in the middle of the collapse.
True freshman Hopkins saw the field on 14 passing plays and five running plays, a notable shift after he wasn’t really in the conversation just a week ago. But after a stunning defeat in what had been viewed as the biggest game of the season so far, Wisconsin changed course, and so did the staff.
In the backfield, Darrion Dupree led the group with 26 snaps after being limited to just four the previous week against USC. Abu Sama followed with 15, while Bryan Jackson logged 10.
The production never matched the workload, though. Wisconsin’s rushing attack finished with 52 yards, a total that felt even flatter given how the ground game had held USC to -17 the week before.
Sama, who had carried 36 times last week, slid back into a rotational role, and Jackson’s snap count was cut in half from Week 8.
At receiver, Jaylon Domingeaux paced the room with 34 snaps and also led Wisconsin in catches, finishing with six receptions for 86 yards. Tyrell Henry was next at 30, followed by Chris Brooks Jr. at 27 and Eugene Hilton Jr. at 25.
Malachi Coleman returned to action but barely factored in, playing just 12 snaps, while Shamar Rigby saw six. Brooks, for the first time this season, did not lead the wide receiver group in snaps.
The tight end rotation was lighter than it had been against USC, when three players topped 30 snaps. Jacob Harris led the way with 28, Grant Stec had 18, Ryan Schwendeman 16 and Emmett Bork eight. Harris was especially involved in the passing game, with 17 passing-play snaps, far more than anyone else in the room; no other Wisconsin tight end had more than four.
Up front, the offensive line was in constant motion. Kevin Heywood and Emerson Mandell each played 51 snaps, and Colin Cubberly added 45.
But the interior was shuffled throughout the game, with Stylz Blackmon and Ryan Cory both getting work at center, while Austin Kawecki, PJ Wilkins and Blake Cherry all rotated at right guard. Cherry, who had not played since Week 5 against Michigan State, also took snaps from Cubberly at left guard.
The only steady pieces were the tackles, Heywood and Mandell, as Wisconsin’s line struggled to settle in against the Hawkeyes.
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