Wisconsin Badgers did not get much hype to start the season. They were seen as a secondary team in Big Ten West with the hype all about Nebraska. There were some who even liked Iowa more than they did the Badgers. Wisconsin reminded everyone why they’re the stil the team to beat in the Big Ten West. Wisconsin blew out South Florida to the tune of 49-0. Badgers had six offensive touchdowns and a defensive touchdown. All the worries about Wisconsin taking a trip to Florida were quelled immediately by Jonathan Taylor and company.

Jonathan Taylor comes up big
Holy Moses, what a fucking game from Taylor. He had 135 yards with two touchdowns on the ground then also did it through the air with 48 yards on two catches that were both touchdowns. Every Big Ten team playing Taylor should be shitting their pants with the thought of Taylor catching the ball out of the backfield. We already knew that Taylor was a beast, and this only enforced that thought. This is the best possible outcome you could want from Taylor to begin the year. Also, it’s not a bad thing to get all sorts of Heisman love Week 1, right?

Defense pitches an impressive shutout
There were a ton of questions about Wisconsin’s defense to start the year. We know about how Wisconsin struggled defensively down the stretch. Many of the experts believed that things would change this season. That proved to be true in Week 1. South Florida is not a cupcake. They were at home, and Wisconsin did not let them score once. That’s exactly how to reinforce that things are different this year. Matt Henningsen had himself a night with a fumble return for a touchdown plus a sack.

Jack Coan shows signs of improvement
We heard all August about how Jack Coan took some significant steps in training camp to win the starting job. Coan showed exactly that. People want to write him off because they want the Graham Mertz to start yet we may have to wait for a while. Coan looked great out there doing precisely his job as a Badgers quarterback. He played the role of game manager with two touchdowns, no interceptions and 196 yards through the air.

Next up
Wisconsin will head home for their opener against Central Michigan. Jim McElwain took over the Chippewas in an interesting move for the former Florida Head Coach, but he’s dealing with a complete rebuild. We may see Mertz in garbage time.

Charlie.