After falling behind Utah State Aggies 14-3 at halftime on Saturday, Wisconsin Badges had a simple formula to get back into the lead in the third quarter - leading to a 16-14 win over the Aggies.
With 7:37 left in the quarter, Kenzel Doe returned a Utah State punt 82 yards for a touchdown. Then, after forcing another Utah State punt, Wisconsin handed the ball to running back Montee Ball six straight times. He turned that sixth carry into a 17-yard touchdown run.
Utah State had a chance to win it, advancing to the Wisconsin 15 with less than a minute left, but a 15-yard penalty backed them up and Josh Thompson missed a 37-yard field goal, giving the ball back to Wisconsin to run out the clock.
Utah State scored two touchdowns in the first half on passes from Chuckie Keeton, first to Kerwynn Williams for 39 yards in the first quarter and then to Matt Austin for 11 yards in the second quarter.
Box Score Hero: Montee Ball not only scored the game-winning touchdown for Wisconsin, he also allowed the Badgers to control the clock in the second half. He finished with 38 carries for 144 yards.
Rankings Ramifications: Wisconsin has already fallen out of the top 25. Struggling against Utah State certainly won't get them back in.
But Did They Cover? Wisconsin opened as 13.5-point favorites, so they didn't cover.
For More On This Game: For more on Badgers football, visit Wisconsin blog Bucky's 5th Quarter, plus Big Ten blog Off Tackle Empire.
Next Week's Schedule: Wisconsin hosts UTEP at noon Sept. 22. Utah State plays at Colorado State at 7 p.m. Sept. 22.
