The Wisconsin offense had little to show for Saturday’s trip to Iowa, and the snap counts tell the story just as clearly as the 30-0 score. The Badgers cycled through personnel, tried a quarterback switch, and still never found any traction against the Hawkeyes.
At quarterback, Colton Joseph took the brunt of the damage. He played 32 snaps and finished with a 35.4 grade, the lowest on the team.
Joseph completed just 5 of 14 passes for 90 yards and offered no real threat with his legs, which pushed Wisconsin to Ryan Hopkins after three quarters. Hopkins logged 19 snaps and posted a 57.5 grade, going 8 of 13 for 93 yards with an interception.
The backfield never gave the offense a lift either. Darrion Dupree led the group with 26 snaps and a 67.2 grade, while Abu Sama III played 15 snaps and earned a 65.9.
Bryan Jackson II was right there too, with 10 snaps and a 66.2. But the production was thin across the board: Sama ran for 23 yards on six carries, Dupree had 22 yards on five carries, and Jackson picked up six yards on five carries.
Wisconsin finished with just 52 rushing yards on 24 attempts, with only two runs really moving the needle.
Jaylon Domingeaux was the one receiver who stood out. He played 34 snaps, posted a 77.2 grade, and caught six passes for 86 yards.
Tyrell Henry was next in line with 30 snaps and a 54.0 grade, finishing with two catches for 54 yards before losing a fumble on the final offensive possession. After that, the top four in the rotation were Domingeaux, Henry, Chris Brooks Jr., and Eugene Hilton Jr., with Brooks grading at 66.9 and Hilton at 59.8.
The tight end usage was lighter than usual because Wisconsin fell behind early and never got the chance to settle into anything on the ground. Jacob Harris played 28 snaps and graded at 53.8, while Ryan Schwendeman had 16 snaps and a 55.3.
Grant Stec and Emmett Bork also saw time, but Harris and Schwendeman combined for just two catches and 10 yards. It was the quietest day for that room all season.
Up front, the Badgers kept shuffling pieces around. Emerson Mandell and Kevin Heywood each played 51 snaps, with Mandell grading at 62.4 and Heywood at 46.3.
Colin Cubberly logged 45 snaps, Stylz Blackmon 34, Austin Kawecki 32, Ryan Cory 17, Blake Cherry 14, and PJ Wilkins 11. Wisconsin used a three-man rotation at right guard with Kawecki, Cherry, and Wilkins, a sign of just how unsettled things have become.
That instability showed up in the details, too. The line was flagged for too many procedural penalties, and against Iowa, that kind of mess only made a bad offensive day worse. Wisconsin has to sort out its offensive line group, because the current setup isn’t producing enough consistency.
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Wisconsin Just Reached A Quarterback Decision Point Fans Saw Coming
After a lopsided loss to Iowa, Wisconsin reached the kind of quarterback crossroads fans had been bracing for. Colton Joseph was benched after a rough outing, and true freshman Ryan Hopkins took over, finishing 8 of 13 for 93 yards with an interception as the Badgers tried to steady things in the second half.
Hopkins now looms as the most likely answer for the next stretch, which gives Wisconsin a different kind of conversation than it was having a week ago. The question is no longer whether the Badgers need a change under center, but how quickly they want to lean into it and what that means for the rest of the season and beyond. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Has An Early Problem To Clean Up Before Delaware
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Delaware now arrives as the next test, and it will be the first-ever meeting between the programs. Wisconsins projected starting group is expected to look much like it did in the opener, even as a few players are still working their way back from injury, which leaves the Badgers with an early chance to clean up the details before the schedule starts to tighten. [Read more 🡒]
Barry Alvarez Just Turned Up Pressure On Wisconsin's Quarterback Debate
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It is the kind of idea that can sound simple in theory and complicated in practice, especially with Rutgers, Maryland and Purdue coming up. Those games could become the backdrop for a live evaluation, one that tests not only Hopkins readiness but also how long Wisconsin can keep the competition balanced before the quarterback question demands a more permanent answer. [Read more 🡒]