2018 Wisconsin Badgers football team

The 2018 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented University of Wisconsin–Madison in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Badgers were led by fourth year head coach Paul Chryst and competed as members of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They played their home games at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.

2018 Wisconsin Badgers football
Pinstripe Bowl champion
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
DivisionWest Division
2018 record8–5 (5–4 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJoe Rudolph (4th season)
Defensive coordinatorJim Leonhard (2nd season)
Home stadiumCamp Randall Stadium
(Capacity: 80,321)
Uniform
2018 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L 
East Division
No. 3 Ohio State xy$  8 –1     13 –1  
No. 14 Michigan x  8 –1     10 –3  
No. 17 Penn State  6 –3     9 –4  
Michigan State  5 –4     7 –6  
Maryland  3 –6     5 –7  
Indiana  2 –7     5 –7  
Rutgers  0 –9     1 –11  
West Division
No. 21 Northwestern xy  8 –1     9 –5  
Wisconsin  5 –4     8 –5  
No. 25 Iowa  5 –4     9 –4  
Purdue  5 –4     6 –7  
Minnesota  3 –6     7 –6  
Nebraska  3 –6     4 –8  
Illinois  2 –7     4 –8  
Championship: Ohio State 45, Northwestern 24
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

Returning many key players from their Orange Bowl-winning 2017 team, the 2018 team was expected to compete for a Big Ten title and a spot in the College Football Playoff. They were ranked fourth in the pre-season AP Poll, tied for the highest start in school history.[1] In the third game of the year, the Badgers were upset by unranked BYU. Wisconsin ultimately lost four more games during the season, including a loss to rival Minnesota that snapped a Wisconsin 14-game winning streak in the series dating back to 2004. The Badgers were 5–4 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for second place in the West Division. They were invited to the Pinstripe Bowl to play Miami (FL) in a rematch of the 2017 Orange Bowl, where they defeated the Hurricanes once again to finish the season at 8–5.

The Badgers were led offensively by sophomore running back Jonathan Taylor, who led FBS in both rushing yards (2,194) and rushing attempts (307), and was awarded the Doak Walker Award as the nation's top running back.[2] He became the third Badger player to eclipse the 2,000 yard mark in a single season after Ron Dayne and Melvin Gordon.[3] Taylor was named a consensus first-team All-American, as was offensive lineman Beau Benzschawel. Four members of the offensive line received first-team all-conference honors: Benzschawel, Tyler Biadasz, Michael Deiter, and David Edwards.[4] Quarterback Alex Hornibrook led the team in passing with 1,532 yards and 13 touchdown passes.

Previous season

The Badgers finished the 2017 season 13–1, 9–0 in Big Ten play to win the Big Ten West division. They lost to Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game 27–21. They received an invitation to the Orange Bowl where they defeated Miami (FL) 34–24. The 13 wins marked the most wins in school history.

Offseason

2018 NFL Draft
Round Pick Team Player Position
4 110 Oakland Raiders Nick Nelson CB
5 156 Denver Broncos Troy Fumagalli TE
5 164 New Orleans Saints Natrell Jamerson S
6 202 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jack Cichy LB
7 230 Jacksonville Jaguars Leon Jacobs OLB

Recruiting

The Badgers signed a total of 20 recruits.

Preseason

Award watch lists
Award Player Position Year
Lott Trophy[5] T. J. Edwards LB SR
Chuck Bednarik Award[6] T. J. Edwards LB SR
D'Cota Dixon S SR
Maxwell Award[7] Jonathan Taylor RB SO
Davey O'Brien Award[8] Alex Hornibrook QB JR
Doak Walker Award[9] Jonathan Taylor RB SO
John Mackey Award[10] Zander Neuville TE SR
Kyle Penniston TE JR
Butkus Award[11] Ryan Connelly LB SR
T. J. Edwards LB JR
Andrew Van Ginkel LB JR
Jim Thorpe Award[12] D'Cota Dixon S SR
Bronko Nagurski Trophy[13] D'Cota Dixon S SR
T. J. Edwards LB SR
Olive Sagapolu DT SR
Outland Trophy[14] Beau Benzschawel OL SR
Tyler Biadasz OL SO
Michael Deiter OL SR
David Edwards OL JR
Olive Sagapolu DT SR
Lou Groza Award[15] Rafael Gaglianone K SR
Ray Guy Award[16] Anthony Lotti P JR
Wuerffel Trophy[17] D'Cota Dixon S SR
Walter Camp Award[18] T. J. Edwards LB SR
Jonathan Taylor RB SO
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award[19] Alex Hornibrook QB JR
Manning Award[20] Alex Hornibrook QB JR

Schedule

Wisconsin's 2018 schedule consisted of 7 home and 5 away games in the regular season. The Badgers hosted Big Ten opponents Nebraska, Illinois, Rutgers, and Minnesota and traveled to Iowa, Michigan, Northwestern, and Penn State, and Purdue.[21]

The team's three non–conference games were against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers from Conference USA (C-USA), New Mexico Lobos from the Mountain West Conference (MWC), and the BYU Cougars, who compete independently in football.

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 318:00 p.m.Western Kentucky*No. 4
ESPNW 34–374,145
September 811:00 a.m.New Mexico*No. 5
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
BTNW 45–1477,003
September 152:30 p.m.BYU*No. 6
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ABCL 21–2480,720
September 227:30 p.m.at IowaNo. 18
FOXW 28–1769,250
October 66:30 p.m.NebraskaNo. 16
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI (rivalry)
BTNW 41–2480,051
October 136:30 p.m.at No. 12 MichiganNo. 15
ABCL 13–38111,360
October 2011:00 a.m.IllinoisNo. 23
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
FS1W 49–2079,736
October 2711:00 a.m.at NorthwesternNo. 20
FOXL 17–3147,330
November 311:00 a.m.Rutgers
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
BTNW 31–1774,379
November 1011:00 a.m.at No. 21 Penn State
ABCL 10–22105,396
November 172:30 p.m.at Purdue
BTNW 47–44 3OT46,114
November 242:30 p.m.Minnesota
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI (rivalry)
ESPN2L 15–3774,038
December 274:15 p.m.vs. Miami (FL)*
ESPNW 35–337,821
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

Schedule Source:[22]

Personnel

Roster
2018 Wisconsin Badgers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
WR 1 Aron Cruickshank Fr
QB 2 Chase Wolf Fr
WR 3 Kendric Pryor  So
WR 4 A.J. Taylor Jr
RB 5 Chris James  Sr
WR 6 Danny Davis III So
RB 7 Bradrick Shaw  Jr
RB 10 Isaac Guerendo Fr
QB 12 Alex Hornibrook  Jr
WR 13 Mike Gregoire Fr
QB 15 Danny Vanden Boom  Fr
WR 16 Jack Dunn  So
QB 17 Jack Coan So
QB 19 Nate Carter Fr
RB 21 Mark Saari  Sr
WR 22 Cade Green  Fr
RB 23 Jonathan Taylor So
WR 24 Adam Krumholz  So
RB 25 Nakia Watson Fr
RB 28 Taiwan Deal  Sr
WR 28 Brady Schipper Fr
FB 30 Coy Wanner  Fr
FB 32 Jake Collinsworth  Fr
RB 36 Hunter Johnson  Fr
RB 37 Garrett Groshek  So
TE 41 Jack Eschenbach Fr
FB 44 John Chenal Fr
FB 45 Alec Ingold Jr
TE 46 Gabe Lloyd  So
TE 49 Kyle Penniston  Jr
OL 59 Andrew Lyons Fr
OL 60 Logan Bruss  Fr
OL 61 Tyler Biadasz  So
OL 62 Patrick Kasl  So
OL 63 Michael Deiter  Sr
OL 65 Tyler Beach  Fr
OL 66 Beau Benzschawel  Sr
OL 67 Jon Dietzen  Jr
OL 68 David Moorman  Jr
OL 70 Josh Seltzner  Fr
OL 71 Cole Van Lanen  So
OL 73 Alex Fenton  Fr
OL 74 Michael Furtney Fr
OL 75 Micah Kapoi  Sr
OL 77 Blake Smithback   Fr
OL 78 Jason Erdmann  Jr
OL 79 David Edwards  Jr
WR 81 Taj Mustapha Fr
WR 82 Emmet Perry  Fr
TE 84 Jake Ferguson  Fr
TE 85 Zander Neuville  Sr
TE 86 Luke Benzschawel  So
WR 87 Quintez Cephus Jr
WR 89 A.J. Abbott Fr
TE 96 Cormac Sampson Fr
 Defense
Pos.#NameClass
CB 4 Donte Burton Fr
CB 5 Rachad Wildgoose Fr
S 7 Reggie Pearson Fr
CB 8 Deron Harrell  Fr
S 9 Scott Nelson  Fr
S 10 Seth Currens  So
CB 11 Alexander Smith Fr
S 13 Evan Bondoc  Sr
S 14 D'Cota Dixon  Sr
OLB 17 Andrew Van Ginkel  Sr
S 18 Collin Wilder Jr
S 19 John Torchio Fr
CB 20 Faion Hicks  Fr
CB 21 Caesar Williams  So
ILB 22 Jacob Heyroth Fr
ILB 23 Mason Stokke  So
S 25 Eric Burrell  So
CB 26 Travian Blaylock Fr
CB 27 Cristian Volpentesta  So
S 30 Tyler Mais  Fr
CB 31 Madison Cone So
OLB 32 Marty Strey Fr
ILB 34 C.J. Goetz Fr
CB 36 Kobe Knaak So
ILB 37 Ethan Cesarz  Fr
OLB 38 Paul Jackson  Jr
OLB 41 Noah Burks  So
OLB 42 Jaylan Franklin Fr
ILB 43 Ryan Connelly  Sr
OLB 46 Hegeman Tiedt  So
ILB 47 Griffin Grady  So
OLB 48 Mason Platter  Fr
OLB 50 Izayah Green-May  Fr
DE 52 David Pfaff  Jr
ILB 53 T. J. Edwards  Sr
ILB 54 Chris Orr  Jr
OLB 55 Christian Bell  So
OLB 56 Zack Baun  Jr
DE 57 Michael Balistreri  Fr
ILB 57 Jack Sanborn Fr
ILB 58 Mike Maskalunas  So
OLB 59 Tyler Johnson  Jr
DE 69 Aaron Vopal  Fr
NT 74 Gunnar Roberge  Jr
NT 76 Kayden Lyles  Fr
DE 90 Isaiah Mullens Fr
NT 91 Bryson Williams Fr
DE 92 Matt Henningsen  Fr
DE 93 Garrett Rand  Jr
DE 94 Boyd Dietzen Fr
DE 95 Keldric Preston  So
DE 97 Isaiahh Loudermilk  So
DE 98 Kraig Howe  Jr
NT 99 Olive Sagapolu Sr
 Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
P 15 Anthony Lotti Jr
K 27 Rafael Gaglianone  Sr
P 38 P.J. Rosowski  Sr
K 39 Zach Hintze  Jr
LS 51 Adam Bay So
LS 52 Josh Bernhagen So
P 90 Connor Allen  Jr
P 96 Conor Schlichting Fr
K 98 Collin Larsh  Fr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt

Roster
Last update: September 6, 2018

Position key
Back B Center C Cornerback CB Defensive back DB
Defensive end DE Defensive lineman DL Defensive tackle DT End E
Fullback FB Guard G Halfback HB Kicker K
Kickoff returner KR Offensive tackle OT Offensive lineman OL Linebacker LB
Long snapper LS Punter P Punt returner PR Quarterback QB
Running back RB Safety S Tight end TE Wide receiver WR

Game summaries

Western Kentucky
1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 0 0 3 0 3
No. 4 Badgers 7 17 3 7 34
See also: 2018 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

New Mexico
1 2 3 4 Total
Lobos 7 0 0 7 14
No. 5 Badgers 3 7 14 21 45
See also: 2018 New Mexico Lobos football team

BYU
1 2 3 4 Total
Cougars 7 7 7 3 24
No. 6 Badgers 7 7 0 7 21
See also: 2018 BYU Cougars football team

at Iowa
1 2 3 4 Total
No. 18 Badgers 0 7 7 14 28
Hawkeyes 0 7 10 0 17
See also: 2018 Iowa Hawkeyes football team

Nebraska
1 2 3 4 Total
Cornhuskers 0 3 14 7 24
No. 16 Badgers 3 17 14 7 41
See also: 2018 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team

at Michigan
1 2 3 4 Total
No. 15 Badgers 0 7 0 6 13
No. 12 Wolverines 0 13 8 17 38
See also: 2018 Michigan Wolverines football team

Illinois
1 2 3 4 Total
Fighting Illini 0 10 7 3 20
No. 23 Badgers 14 14 14 7 49
See also: 2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

at Northwestern
1 2 3 4 Total
No. 20 Badgers 7 3 0 7 17
Wildcats 7 7 10 7 31
See also: 2018 Northwestern Wildcats football team

Rutgers
1 2 3 4 Total
Scarlet Knights 0 0 3 14 17
Badgers 7 3 14 7 31
See also: 2018 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team

at Penn State
1 2 3 4 Total
Badgers 7 0 3 0 10
Nittany Lions 10 6 3 3 22
See also: 2018 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

at Purdue
1 2 3 4OT2OT3OT Total
Badgers 0 3 10 14776 47
Boilermakers 0 10 14 3773 44
See also: 2018 Purdue Boilermakers football team

Minnesota
1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Gophers 3 14 6 14 37
Badgers 0 7 0 8 15
See also: 2018 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team

vs Miami (FL)–Pinstripe Bowl
1 2 3 4 Total
Hurricanes 3 0 0 0 3
Badgers 14 0 7 14 35
See also: 2018 Miami Hurricanes football team and 2018 Pinstripe Bowl

Rankings
Further information: 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Final 
AP 4 (1) 5 (1) 6 (1) 18 15 16 15 23 20 RV RV NR RV NR NR RV 
Coaches 7 6 6 16 13 12 10 19 19 RV RV RV RV RV NR RV 
CFP Not released NR NR NR NR NR NR Not released

Awards and honors
Individual Awards
Player Award Ref.
Jake Wood Dungy–Thompson Humanitarian Award [4]
Jonathan Taylor Doak Walker Award
Ameche–Dayne Running Back of the Year		 [23]
[4]
Michael Deiter Rimington–Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year [4]
All-Big Ten
Player Position Coaches Media
Jonathan Taylor RB 1 1
Tyler Biadasz C 1 1
Michael Deiter OG 1 1
Beau Benzschawel OG 1 1
David Edwards OT 2 1
T. J. Edwards LB 2 1
D'Cota Dixon DB 3 3
Ryan Connelly LB 3 Hon.
Jake Ferguson TE Hon. Hon.
Rafael Gaglianone K Hon. –
Andrew Van Ginkel LB – Hon.
Hon. = Honorable mention. Reference:[4]

Players drafted into the NFL
See also: 2019 NFL Draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionNFL Club
378Michael DeiterGMiami Dolphins
5143Ryan ConnellyLBNew York Giants
5151Andrew Van GinkelLBMiami Dolphins
5169David EdwardsOLLos Angeles Rams

Signed undrafted free agents

References
  1. Potrykus, Jeff (August 20, 2018). "Badgers ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press preseason top 25". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  2. "2018 College Football Leaders". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
  3. "Jonathan Taylor runs for 205 yards in Wisconsin's Pinstripe Bowl victory over Miami". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. December 27, 2018.
  4. "2018 All-Big Ten Football Teams and Individual Award Recipients" (PDF). BigTen.org. Big Ten Conference. November 28, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  5. "2018 Watch List | Lott IMPACT Trophy | Honoring College Football's Defensive Best". lottimpacttrophy.org. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
  6. "2018 Bednarik Award Watch List - Maxwell Football Club". Maxwell Football Club. 2018-07-16. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
  7. "2018 Maxwell Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  8. "Davey O'Brien Award Watch List includes 26 players". July 17, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  9. "2018 Doak Walker Award Candidates". July 18, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2018.
  10. "2018 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List Released" (PDF). July 20, 2018. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  11. "Butkus Award - 2018 Collegiate Watchlist". The Butkus Award. July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
  12. "Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Names 2018 Preseason Watchlist". July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
  13. "2018 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Preseason Watch List". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  14. "22018 OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST UNVEILED". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  15. "Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Announces 2018 Preseason Watch List". July 25, 2018. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  16. "Ray Guy Award preseason watch list unveiled". July 25, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  17. "Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2018 Watch List". July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  18. Carbone, Al (July 27, 2018). "Walter Camp Football Foundation Announces 2018 Player of the Year Preseason "Watch List"". Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  19. "Watch List for 2018 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award ® Presented by A. O. Smith Announced". August 14, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  20. "Manning Award: See which quarterbacks made the preseason watch list for 2018". August 16, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  21. "Football - Wisconsin Athletics - 2018 Football Schedule". uwbadgers.com.
  22. "2018 Wisconsin Badgers Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  23. Galloway, Jason (December 7, 2018). "Badgers running back Jonathan Taylor becomes 4th Wisconsin player to win Doak Walker Award". Wisconsin State Journal.
  24. "Undrafted free agent tracker 2019: Signings from all 32 NFL teams in one spot".
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