The 2012 Wisconsin Badgers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison as a member of the Leaders Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their seventh and final year under head coach Bret Bielema, the Badgers compiled an 8–6 record (4–4 in conference games), won the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 414 to 268. Despite finishing third in the Leaders Division, the Badgers advanced to the Big Ten Championship Game, because the first- and second-place teams (Ohio State and Penn State) were ineligible for postseason play. The Badgers defeated Nebraska in the Big Ten Championship Game and advanced to the Rose Bowl, losing to Stanford. On December 4, Bielema accepted the vacant coaching position at Arkansas.Associated Press, Wisconsin Coach Headed to Arkansas, New York Times, December 4, 2012 Athletic director and former head coach Barry Alvarez took over as head coach for the Rose Bowl.
Montee Ball led the team with 1,830 yards and 132 points scored, and won the Doak Walker Award as the best running back in college football., UCLABruins.com, December 6, 2012 He also became the first player to score a touchdown in three straight Rose Bowl Games. Ball and offensive linemen Travis Frederick and Ricky Wagner received All-America honors. Linebacker Mike Taylor led the team with 69 solo tackles, 123 total tackles, and 15 tackles for loss.
The team played its home games at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.
Schedule
Rankings
Game summaries No. 9 (FCS) Northern Iowa
Statistics UNIWIS First downs 14 22 Total yards 306 387 Rushing yards 41 168 Passing yards 265 219 Turnovers 0 0 Time of possession 20:55 39:05
Team Category Player StatisticsNorthern Iowa Passing Sawyer Kollmorgen 18/34, 265 yards, 3 TD Rushing David Johnson 8 rushes, 18 yards Receiving David Johnson 4 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TDWisconsin Passing Danny O'Brien 19/23, 219 yards, 2 TD Rushing Montee Ball 32 rushes, 120 yards, TD Receiving Jared Abbrederis 6 receptions, 84 yards, 2 TD
At Oregon State
Statistics WISORST First downs 13 18 Total yards 207 354 Rushing yards 35 78 Passing yards 172 276 Turnovers 2 0 Time of possession 24:25 35:35
Team Category Player StatisticsWisconsin Passing Danny O'Brien 20/38, 172 yards, TD, INT Rushing Montee Ball 15 rushes, 61 yards Receiving Jeff Duckworth 7 receptions, 55 yardsOregon State Passing Sean Mannion 29/47, 276 yards, TD Rushing Malcolm Agnew 11 rushes, 45 yards Receiving Markus Wheaton 8 receptions, 87 yards
Utah State
Statistics USUWIS First downs 13 12 Total yards 308 234 Rushing yards 127 156 Passing yards 181 78 Turnovers 0 1 Time of possession 26:55 33:05
Team Category Player StatisticsUtah State Passing Chuckie Keeton 18/34, 181 yards, 2 TD Rushing Chuckie Keeton 15 rushes, 75 yards Receiving Kerwynn Williams 6 receptions, 78 yards, TDWisconsin Passing Danny O'Brien 5/10, 63 yards Rushing Montee Ball 37 rushes, 139 yards, TD Receiving Brian Wozniak 2 receptions, 24 yards
UTEP
Statistics UTEPWIS First downs 20 21 Total yards 336 423 Rushing yards 77 213 Passing yards 259 210 Turnovers 1 2 Time of possession 31:20 28:40
Team Category Player StatisticsUTEP Passing Nick Lamaison 22/39, 259 yards, 2 TD Rushing Xay Williams 8 rushes, 53 yards, TD Receiving Michael Edwards 7 receptions, 151 yards, 2 TDWisconsin Passing Joel Stave 12/17, 210 yards, TD, INT Rushing Melvin Gordon 8 rushes, 112 yards, TD Receiving Jared Abbrederis 6 receptions, 147 yards, TD
At No. 22 Nebraska
Statistics WISNEB First downs 17 24 Total yards 295 440 Rushing yards 56 259 Passing yards 239 181 Turnovers 1 2 Time of possession 29:00 31:00
Team Category Player StatisticsWisconsin Passing Joel Stave 12/23, 214 yards, TD Rushing Montee Ball 31 rushes, 93 yards, 3 TD Receiving Jared Abbrederis 7 receptions, 142 yards, TDNebraska Passing Taylor Martinez 17/29, 181 yards, 2 TD Rushing Taylor Martinez 13 rushes, 107 yards, TD Receiving Kenny Bell 4 receptions, 57 yards
Illinois
Statistics ILLWIS First downs 15 18 Total yards 284 427 Rushing yards 106 173 Passing yards 178 254 Turnovers 2 2 Time of possession 31:48 28:12
Team Category Player StatisticsIllinois Passing Nathan Scheelhaase 18/29, 178 yards, TD, INT Rushing Nathan Scheelhaase 22 rushes, 84 yards, TD Receiving Darius Millines 5 receptions, 54 yardsWisconsin Passing Joel Stave 16/25, 254 yards, 2 TD, INT Rushing Montee Ball 19 rushes, 116 yards, 2 TD Receiving Jared Abbrederis 7 receptions, 117 yards, TD
At Purdue
Statistics WISPUR First downs 30 11 Total yards 645 252 Rushing yards 467 128 Passing yards 178 124 Turnovers 1 1 Time of possession 38:42 21:18
Team Category Player StatisticsWisconsin Passing Joel Stave 12/21, 178 yards, TD, INT Rushing Montee Ball 29 rushes, 247 yards, 3 TD Receiving Jacob Pedersen 4 receptions, 77 yards, TDPurdue Passing Caleb TerBush 7/16, 80 yards, INT Rushing Akeem Hunt 4 rushes, 85 yards, 1 TD Receiving Antavian Edison 3 receptions, 58 yards
Minnesota
Statistics MINNWIS First downs 12 24 Total yards 245 443 Rushing yards 96 337 Passing yards 149 106 Turnovers 2 0 Time of possession 25:04 34:56
Team Category Player StatisticsMinnesota Passing Philip Nelson 13/24, 149 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT Rushing Philip Nelson 16 rushes, 67 yards Receiving Brandon Green 3 receptions, 44 yards, TDWisconsin Passing Joel Stave 7/15, 106 yards Rushing James White 15 rushes, 175 yards, 3 TD Receiving Jared Abbrederis 2 receptions, 68 yards
Michigan State
Statistics MSUWIS First downs 17 10 Total yards 277 190 Rushing yards 61 19 Passing yards 216 171 Turnovers 1 0 Time of possession 29:05 30:55
Team Category Player StatisticsMichigan State Passing Andrew Maxwell 24/39, 216 yards, 2 TD Rushing Le'Veon Bell 21 rushes, 77 yards Receiving Keith Mumphery 5 receptions, 63 yardsWisconsin Passing Joel Stave 9/11, 127 yards, TD Rushing Montee Ball 22 rushes, 46 yards Receiving Jacob Pedersen 3 receptions, 65 yards, TD
At Indiana
Statistics WISIND First downs Total yards Rushing yards Passing yards Turnovers Time of possession
Team Category Player StatisticsWisconsin Passing Rushing Receiving Indiana Passing Rushing Receiving
No. 6 Ohio State
Statistics OSUWIS First downs Total yards Rushing yards Passing yards Turnovers Time of possession
Team Category Player StatisticsOhio State Passing Rushing Receiving Wisconsin Passing Rushing Receiving
During the game, there was a ceremony to honor the 1962 Wisconsin Badgers football team on the 50th anniversary of their Big Ten Championship.
At Penn State
Statistics WISPSU First downs Total yards Rushing yards Passing yards Turnovers Time of possession
Team Category Player StatisticsWisconsin Passing Rushing Receiving Penn State Passing Rushing Receiving
Vs. No. 14 Nebraska (Big Ten Championship)
Statistics NEBWIS First downs Total yards Rushing yards Passing yards Turnovers Time of possession
Team Category Player StatisticsNebraska Passing Rushing Receiving Wisconsin Passing Rushing Receiving
Wisconsin had 2 running backs run for over 200 yards (Montee Ball and Melvin Gordon) and Badgers running backs accounted for 8 rushing touchdowns on the day (along with a passing touchdown by running back James White). The 70 points tied the second-highest mark in Wisconsin history, set against Northwestern in 2010 and Austin Peay in 2010 (the Wisconsin record for most points in a game is 83 against Indiana in 2010). The Badgers returned their first interception for a touchdown, as senior defensive back Marcus Cromartie returned a deflected Taylor Martinez pass 29 yards to put Wisconsin up 14-0 less than 3 minutes into the game.
A wild rushing touchdown by Taylor Martinez and a Brett Maher field goal narrowed Wisconsin's advantage to 14-10, but the Badgers went 45 yards on two plays to set up another scoring drive, capped off by a 9-yard rushing touchdown by James White. When Nebraska's offense stalled, Wisconsin's offense roared into gear and scored three more touchdowns in the 2nd quarter alone, taking a 42-10 lead at the half with a James White passing touchdown to TE Sam Arneson.
In the second half, Nebraska managed to gain a grand total of 3 yards before Martinez threw his second interception on Nebraska's first drive of the half. Wisconsin scored on the next play, taking a 49-10 lead.
The Badgers secured their third consecutive Big Ten Championship and a third consecutive Rose Bowl berth with the blowout win, improving to 8-5 on the year and snapping their 2-game losing streak.
On December 4, head coach Bret Bielema announced he would take the head coaching vacancy at the University of Arkansas, ending his career at Wisconsin after 7 seasons (from 2006 to 2012). Bielema had a 68-24 overall record in 7 seasons at Wisconsin and his teams went 37-19 in Big Ten conference games. In addition, Bielema won both of the first two Big Ten Conference Championship Games.
Vs. No. 8 Stanford (Rose Bowl)
Statistics WISSTAN First downs Total yards Rushing yards Passing yards Turnovers Time of possession
Team Category Player StatisticsWisconsin Passing Rushing Receiving Stanford Passing Rushing Receiving
Personnel Coaching staff Name Position Bret Bielema Head coach Matt Canada Offensive coordinator, quarterbacks coach Chris Ash Defensive coordinator, defensive backs coach Zach Azzanni Wide receivers coach Andy Buh Linebackers coach Eddie Faulkner Tight ends coach Thomas Hammock Assistant head coach, running backs coach recruiting coordinator Mike Markuson Offensive line coach Bart Miller Offensive line coach Charlie Partridge Associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator, defensive line coach Ben Strickland Defensive backs, special teams coach Terrance Jamison Graduate assistant
Roster (as of October 15, 2012)Quarterbacks 2 Joel Stave – Freshman 5 Jon Budmayr – Junior 6 Danny O'Brien - Junior 9 Chase Knox - Freshman 10 Curt Phillips – Senior 13 Bart Houston - Freshman 15 Thad Armstrong - Freshman 16 Clay Rust - Freshman
Wide receivers 1 AJ Jordan – Freshman 3 Kenzel Doe – Sophomore 4 Jared Abbrederis – Junior 8 Isaiah Williams – Sophomore 9 Jordan Fredrick – Freshman 15 Jeff Duckworth – Junior 16 Reggie Love Jr. - Freshman 17 Derek Hasanoglu – Freshman 18 Lance Baretz – Freshman 19 Manasseh Garner – Junior 28 Leo Musso - Freshman 30 Alex Erickson - Freshman 31 Connor Cummins – Sophomore 82 Jake Stengel – Freshman 89 Chase Hammond – Sophomore Running backs 20 James White – Junior 22 Jeff Lewis – Sophomore 23 Vonte Jackson - Freshman 25 Melvin Gordon – Freshman 26 Derek Straus – Freshman 27 Kyle Zuleger – Junior 28 Montee Ball – Senior 34 Derek Watt (FB) – Freshman 37 Kevin MacCudden (FB) – Sophomore 86 Sherard Cadogan (FB) – Sophomore
Tight ends 38 Eric Steffes - Freshman 42 Alex Walker - Freshman 46 Austin Traylor – Freshman 48 Jacob Pedersen – Junior 49 Sam Arneson – Sophomore 81 Brock DeCicco – Junior 87 Scot MacMillan – Sophomore 85 Brian Wozniak – Junior 90 Matt Prell - Freshman
Offensive line 54 Kyle Costigan – Sophomore 55 Joseph McNamara – Sophomore 56 Riki Kodanko – Sophomore 57 Jake Meador - Freshman 58 Ricky Wagner – Senior 61 Tyler Marz – Freshman 62 Walker Williams - Freshman 64 Robert Burge – Senior 65 Jonathan Coon – Freshman 70 Dan Voltz - Freshman 71 Ray Ball – Freshman 72 Travis Frederick – Junior 73 Dallas Lewallen – Sophomore 75 Zac Matthias – Junior 78 Rob Havenstein – Sophomore 79 Ryan Groy – Junior Defensive line 11 David Gilbert – Junior 41 Jesse Hayes – Freshman 45 Warren Herring – Sophomore 50 Josh Harrison – Sophomore 51 Tyler Dippel – Junior 55 Trent Denlinger - Freshman 58 Jacob Ninneman – Sophomore 68 Logan Schmidt - Freshman 74 Konrad Zagzebski – Sophomore 76 Arthur Goldberg - Freshman 77 Bryce Gilbert – Sophomore 87 Ethan Hemer – Junior 92 Pat Muldoon – Junior 94 Scot Granger – Junior