This is a no-win situation for Wisconsin Badgers for their bowl game. If they win, people say ‘It’s just Western Michigan, they’re a MAC opponent’ and if they were to lose, ‘Oh Badgers weren’t that good.’ Wisconsin beat Broncos rather soundly with a 24-16 victory. They get their second straight bowl win, and Badgers head into the 2017 season on a positive note.

Troy Fumagalli played no games
One of the best games from a Badger receiver or tight end in recent memory. Troy Fumagalli had six catches for 83 yards with one touchdown. It felt like Fumagalli had 10 catches in this game though. All six catches were big in some capacity, and the degree of difficulty was unreal. Broncos had no answer for him, and he gave Badgers quite a passing game. That’s a sentence we don’t hear often when it comes to Wisconsin. Fumagalli will return next year as one of Badgers better players

Turnover when it matters
Western Michigan had the crazy fumble luck I have ever seen in this game with loose ball after loose ball falling back to Broncos, but they did have one turnover, an interception made by T.J. Edwards. Badgers just reached crisis level in the game after losing a fourth down conversion up seven because Eric Steffes ran an unnecessary pick that caused Wisconsin to punt. Zach Terrell’s first pass from around the 5 was an interception by T.J. Edwards who had a huge game with 10 tackles as well.

Houston, Clement, Ogunbowale go out strong
There’s something special about your final game as for your collegiate team and having a kick ass game. Houston completed nearly all of his passes minus a Fumagalli drop in the end zone. Clement only rushed for 71 yards but still recorded a touchdown plus played a factor early on in this game. Same goes for Ogunbowale who got into the end zone as well in the first half. This senior class endured a great deal with the Gary Andersen saga, but it’s nice to see a 10-win season that wasn’t expected.

Next year is big for Wisconsin
Far to say, the table is set for Badgers to have another big year next season. They bring back a slew of talent with nine potential starters back on defense and nearly their whole offensive line. Unlike last year, Paul Chryst should be ready to hit the ground running with this team. Further, they don’t have a big SEC non-conference game to get ready for this Fall. Badgers should be ranked in the top 15 if not the top 10 to start the 2017 season.

Charlie.