Wisconsin’s comeback at Penn State was built on a lot of guts, a few nerve-jangling mistakes, and just enough offensive firepower to survive a 17-0 hole and leave Happy Valley with a 24-20 win over No. 13 Penn State. Luke Fickell’s biggest victory in Madison came with plenty of moving parts on offense, and the grades tell the story of a unit that was uneven early but found enough answers when the game was on the line.
Colton Joseph had the kind of afternoon that makes grading quarterbacks such a headache. For long stretches, he was out of sync, and the second quarter was brutal: a bad throw to the flat turned into a pick-six, and he followed that with another interception on the next drive.
Early in the fourth quarter, after the Wisconsin defense forced a three-and-out, he made another poor read and threw his third interception. Those are the kinds of mistakes that can sink an underdog on the road.
And yet Joseph kept swinging. He punched in a seven-yard keeper to trim the margin to 10 before halftime, then came through on third-and-10 with an 11-yard touchdown to Eugene Hilton Jr. in the corner of the end zone that made it 20-17 Penn State with 3:31 left in the fourth quarter.
Then came the play that changed everything: Joseph hit a wide-open Jacob Harris over the seam, and Harris did the rest, rumbling 72 yards for the go-ahead score with 1:13 remaining. Joseph finished 18-of-38 for 235 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions, while adding 13 carries for 39 yards and another score.
The turnovers keep him out of the “good” range, but the comeback also makes a failing grade impossible.
The backfield took a hit when Abu Sama III went down. He returned from injury against Penn State and gave Wisconsin a spark with a 17-yard run in the second quarter, but he suffered an apparent injury after that and did not return.
Sama finished with five carries for 34 yards. That forced Darrion Dupree into a much bigger role, and he handled it well.
Dupree ran eight times for 52 yards and also caught four passes for 44 yards. He did have a strange drop on Wisconsin’s final drive of the third quarter, but he was productive as both a runner and a receiver.
With Bryan Jackson II already out, Sama’s status matters a lot going forward.
The wide receiver group didn’t exactly light up the box score. Tyrell Henry and Chris Brooks Jr. were both limited to two catches after their strong showing against Eastern Michigan, with Henry gaining 14 yards and Brooks 16.
Shamar Rigby hauled in his first catch as a Badger, an 11-yard grab, but his role remains small. Malachi Coleman, back from injury and on the field for 27 snaps, wasn’t targeted.
Hilton was the one wideout who made his opportunities count. He had just two catches for 29 yards on eight targets, and he was flagged for offensive pass interference on Wisconsin’s first play of the game.
But his touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter was a big-time grab and a huge part of the finish. Even with Joseph’s accuracy issues muddying the evaluation, Hilton’s clutch moment helps carry the group.
At tight end, Jacob Harris went from promising to impossible to ignore. After posting three catches for 89 yards against Eastern Michigan, he followed it up with five receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown against Penn State, finishing as Wisconsin’s leading receiver.
His 72-yard touchdown with 1:13 left was the game-winner, and it came after he had already committed a pair of false starts. That’s a rough sequence, but Harris answered with the biggest play of the night.
The rest of the tight end room was quiet. Grant Stec had one five-yard catch, Emmett Bork was held without a reception and was also flagged for a false start, and Ryan Schwendeman did not draw a target in his return from a foot injury.
Still, Harris is making a strong case that Wisconsin has found something real there. At 6-foot-6 and 265 pounds, he brings size, hands and the kind of mentality that showed up in the biggest moment of the game.
Up front, Wisconsin’s offensive line had a decent day considering the setting. Beaver Stadium is not a friendly place for a first road test, and the group held up better than the score might suggest, especially in pass protection. Five of the six linemen who played earned PFF pass-blocking grades of 84.0 or better.
PJ Wilkins was the weak spot, allowing all three pressures credited to the line and also drawing a false start. Stylz Blackmon, whose snaps continue to dip as Emerson Mandell gets healthier, was flagged for a false start as well, and Kevin Heywood also had a false start despite finishing with a team-best 73.6 overall PFF grade.
Austin Kawecki, the veteran transfer from Oklahoma State, has not fully settled in and had some issues with snaps, though he has still been steadier than Wilkins. The struggles at left tackle are becoming harder to ignore.
The penalties weren’t ideal, and Wilkins’ night dragged down the group, but the line did enough in a tough road atmosphere to come out with a solid mark. Wisconsin’s offense was messy, but it was also resilient, and that combination was enough to turn a disastrous start into a win.
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Wisconsin Just Sent The AP Poll Debate Into Overdrive
Wisconsins upset of No. 13 Penn State did exactly what a statement win is supposed to do, but it still did not quite push the Badgers into the AP Top 25. They remain unranked in the latest poll, yet they landed 102 points and now sit at the top of the received votes list, which is about as close as a team can get without actually cracking the rankings.
The path back in is clear enough, even if it is not guaranteed. If Wisconsin takes care of Michigan State next and gets a little help elsewhere, next week could finally be the one where the Badgers break through. For now, the poll debate they sparked after beating Penn State is still very much alive. [Read more 🡒]
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Wisconsins upset at Penn State did more than grab attention around the Big Ten. The Badgers walked out of Beaver Stadium with a 24-20 win, their first there since 2003, and suddenly the conversation around the program changed from surprise to scrutiny. Beating a ranked opponent on the road is one thing, but backing it up is where a team starts to earn real credibility.
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Wisconsin Faces A New Kind Of Pressure After Its Penn State Stunner
Wisconsins comeback at Penn State gave Luke Fickell the kind of road win that can change the feel of a season. Down 17-0 and staring at a tough afternoon in a hostile building, the Badgers rallied to knock off the No. 13 team in the country, a result that stands as one of the clearest markers yet of progress in this era. Even so, the reward has been more about momentum than recognition, with Wisconsin still sitting outside the AP Top 25 as it turns its attention to the next Big Ten test.
Michigan State comes to Madison for the conference home opener carrying its own concerns, including an injury to key player Cam Edwards and a recent stretch of uneven play. For Wisconsin, the new pressure is obvious: after a statement win, there is less room to treat anything as a stepping stone. The Badgers now have to show that the Penn State rally was not just an emotional peak, but the start of something sturdier as the schedule keeps tightening. [Read more 🡒]