2008 Wisconsin Badgers football team

The 2008 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Badgers were coached by Bret Bielema and played their home games at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.

2008 Wisconsin Badgers football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record7–6 (3–5 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorPaul Chryst
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorDave Doeren
Base defense4-3
MVPAllen Langford
CaptainDeAndre Levy
Mike Newkirk
Chris Pressley
Kraig Urbik
Home stadiumCamp Randall Stadium (80,321, Field Turf)
2008 Big Ten Conference football standings
ConfOverall
Team W L  W L 
No. 8 Penn State $+  7 –1   11 –2  
No. 9 Ohio State %+  7 –1   10 –3  
No. 24 Michigan State  6 –2   9 –4  
Northwestern  5 –3   9 –4  
No. 20 Iowa  5 –3   9 –4  
Wisconsin  3 –5   7 –6  
Minnesota  3 –5   7 –6  
Illinois  3 –5   5 –7  
Purdue  2 –6   4 –8  
Michigan  2 –6   3 –9  
Indiana  1 –7   3 –9  
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The 2007 Wisconsin Badgers football team was not expected to win the Big 10, but with a close loss to Michigan and a 38-7 blowout loss to Penn State, expectations were much lower. However, they finished with only one more loss to Big 10 champ Ohio State and managed to get an Outback Bowl bid, only to lose 21-17 to the Tennessee Volunteers, who lost the previous Outback Bowl 20-10 to the Nittany Lions.

Schedule
DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 3011:00 a.m.[1]Akron*No. 13
BTN[1]W 38–1780,910[2]
September 611:00 a.m.[1]Marshall*No. 11
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
BTN[1]W 51–1480,396[2]
September 139:30 p.m.[3]at No. 21 Fresno State*No. 10
ESPN2[3]W 13–1042,387[2]
September 272:30 p.m.at MichiganNo. 9
ABC/ESPNL 25–27109,833[2]
October 47:00 p.m.[4]No. 12 Ohio StateNo. 18
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ABC[4]L 17–2081,608[2]
October 117:00 p.m.[4]No. 6 Penn State
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ESPN[4]L 7–4881,524[2]
October 1811:00 a.m.at Iowa
BTNL 16–3870,585[2]
October 2511:00 a.m.[5]Illinoisdagger
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ESPN2[5]W 27–1781,241[2]
November 111:00 a.m.at No. 22 Michigan State
ESPNL 24–2575,121[2]
November 811:00 a.m.at Indiana
BTNW 55–2030,618[2]
November 152:30 p.m.Minnesota
ABCW 35–3281,228[2]
November 222:30 p.m.Cal Poly*
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
BTNW 36–35 OT80,709[2]
December 273:30 p.m.vs. Florida State*
ESPNL 13–4252,692[2]
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[6]

Game summaries

Akron
1 2 3 4 Total
Zips 0 10 0 7 17
Badgers 14 3 14 7 38

Marshall
1 2 3 4 Total
Thundering Herd 7 7 0 0 14
Badgers 0 17 21 13 51

Fresno State
See also: 2008 Fresno State Bulldogs football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Badgers 7 3 3 0 13
Bulldogs 0 0 10 0 10

Michigan
See also: 2008 Michigan Wolverines football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Badgers 6 13 0 6 25
Wolverines 0 0 7 20 27

Ohio State
See also: 2008 Ohio State Buckeyes football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Buckeyes 7 0 3 10 20
Badgers 0 10 0 7 17

Penn State
See also: 2008 Penn State Nittany Lions football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Nittany Lions 3 21 17 7 48
Badgers 0 7 0 0 7

Iowa
See also: 2008 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Badgers 0 3 6 7 16
Hawkeyes 7 7 14 10 38

Illinois
See also: 2008 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Fighting Illini 0 10 7 0 17
Badgers 3 7 7 10 27

Michigan State
See also: 2008 Michigan State Spartans football team
1 234Total
Badgers 7 377 24
• Spartans 0 6712 25
  • Date: November 1
  • Location: Spartan Stadium
    East Lansing, MI
  • Game start: 11:02 a.m. CST
  • Elapsed time: 3:34
  • Game attendance: 75,121
  • Game weather: 48F, Wind: NE 10 MPH, Mostly Sunny
  • Referee: Bill LeMonniner
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Pam Ward (Play-by-play) & Ray Bentley (Color)

Indiana
See also: 2008 Indiana Hoosiers football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Badgers 14 10 17 14 55
Hoosiers 13 7 0 0 20

Minnesota
See also: 2008 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team and Paul Bunyan's Axe
1 234Total
Golden Gophers 0 2138 32
• Badgers 7 01018 35
Scoring summary
112:38WISGarrett Graham 2-yard pass from Dustin Sherer (Philip Welch kick)Wisconsin 7-0
213:30MINNBrandon Green 4-yard pass from Adam Weber (Joel Monroe kick)Tie 7-7
211:14MINNBrodrick Smith 43-yard pass from Adam Weber (Joel Monroe kick)Minnesota 14-7
28:17MINNAdam Weber 6-yard run (Joel Monroe kick)Minnesota 21-7
310:14WISPhilip Welch 47-yard field goalMinnesota 21-10
34:17WISP.J. Hill 1-yard run (Philip Welch kick)Minnesota 21-17
31:37MINNJoel Monroe 30-yard field goalMinnesota 24-17
413:25WISP.J. Hill 1-yard run (Philip Welch kick)Tie 24-24
413:16WISSafety, ball fumbled out of end zoneWisconsin 26-24
410:47WISSafety, Adam Weber tackled by Mike Newkirk in end zoneWisconsin 28-24
46:59WISJohn Clay 5-yard run (Philip Welch kick)Wisconsin 35-24
44:15MINNShady Salamon 13-yard pass from Adam Weber (Shady Salamon run)Wisconsin 35-32

[7]

Cal Poly
1 2 3 4OT Total
Mustangs 7 13 3 66 35
Badgers 0 14 7 87 36

Rankings
See also: 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
AP1311108918
Coaches121110881724
HarrisNot released16Not released
BCSNot releasedNot released

Roster
(as of August 12, 2008)[8]
Quarterback
Wide Receiver
  • Isaac Anderson - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Nate Emanuel - Redshirt Sophomore
  • David Gilreath - Sophomore
  • Xavier Harris - Junior
  • Kyle Jefferson - Sophomore
  • Daven Jones - Sophomore
  • Richard Kirtley - Redshirt Junior
  • Eric Kossoris - Redshirt Freshman
  • Maurice Moore - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Cody Rose - Redshirt Freshman
  • Elijah (T.J.) Theus - Redshirt Junior
  • Nick Toon - Redshirt Freshman
  • T.J. Williams - Freshman
Offensive Lineman
  • Jordan Bergmann - Freshman
  • Jake Bscherer - Junior
  • Robert Burge - Freshman
  • Gabe Carimi - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Chris Cromwell - Freshman
  • Jake Current - Freshman
  • Andy Kemp - Senior
  • John Moffitt - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Bill Nagy - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Josh Oglesby - Redshirt Freshman
  • Joe Schafer - Freshman
  • Kraig Urbik - Redshirt Senior
  • Eric Vandenheuvel - Senior
  • Kevin Zeitler - Freshman
  

Fullback

Running Back
  • Zach Brown - Sophomore
  • John Clay - Redshirt Freshman
  • Bradie Ewing - Freshman
  • P.J. Hill - Redshirt Junior
  • Tyler Holland - Junior
  • Dex Jones - Freshman
  • Mike Preisler - Redshirt Freshman
  • Erik Smith - Freshman
Tight End
  
Defensive Lineman
  • Eriks Briedis - Freshman
  • Patrick Butrym - Redshirt Freshman
  • Dan Cascone - Redshirt Junior
  • Jason Chapman - Redshirt Senior
  • Kirk DeCremer - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Ricky Garner - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Jasper Grimes - Redshirt Freshman
  • Jordan Hein - Redshirt Junior
  • Brandon Hoey - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Kenny Jones - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Brendan Kelly - Freshman
  • Peter Konz - Freshman
  • Anthony Mains - Freshman
  • Dan Moore - Junior
  • Mike Newkirk - Redshirt Senior
  • Louis Nzegwu - Redshirt Freshman
  • O'Brien Schofield - Redshirt Junior
  • Matt Shaughnessy - Senior
  • Jeff Stehle - Redshirt Junior
  • J. J. Watt - Freshman
  • Tyler Westphal - Freshman
Linebacker
  • Jonathan Casillas - Senior
  • Ryan Flasch - Redshirt Senior
  • Elijah Hodge - Redshirt Junior
  • Leonhard Hubbard - Freshman
  • DeAndre Levy - Senior
  • Jaevery McFadden - Redshirt Junior
  • Tony Megna - Redshirt Freshman
  • Joshua Neal - Redshirt Senior
  • Erik Prather - Redshirt Junior
  • Tyrell Rosemeyer - Freshman
  • Kevin Rouse - Redshirt Freshman
  • Blake Sorensen - Sophomore
  • Culver St. Jean - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Mike Taylor - Freshman
  
Defensive Back
  • Niles Brinkley - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Shane Carter - Redshirt Junior
  • Kevin Claxton - Freshman
  • Marcus Cromartie - Freshman
  • Antonio Fenelus- Freshman
  • Mario Goins - Redshirt Freshman
  • Adam Hampton - Redshirt Freshman
  • William Hartmann - Redshirt Junior
  • Aaron Henry - Sophomore
  • Shelton Johnson - Freshman
  • Allen Langford - Redshirt Senior
  • Andrew Lukasko - Redshirt Freshman
  • Chris Maragos - Redshirt Junior
  • Otis Merrill - Redshirt Freshman
  • Prince Moody - Redshirt Junior
  • Josh Nettles - Junior
  • Chukwuma Offor - Redshirt Freshman
  • Aubrey Pleasant - Redshirt Junior
  • Devin Smith - Freshman

Jay Valai-Soph

Long Snapper
  • Zach Opsal - Redshirt Sophomore
  • Dave Peck - Redshirt Senior
  • Kyle Wojta - Redshirt Freshman
  • Drew Woodward - Redshirt Junior
Punter
Place Kicker
  • Matt Fischer - Redshirt Junior
  • Philip Welch - Redshirt Freshman

Statistics

Passing
NameGP-GSYearAtt-Cmp-IntPctYdsTDAvg/G
Allan Evridge6-6Sr (R)132-71-553.8%9495126.3
Dustin Sherer11-7Jr (R)191-104-554.5%13896158.2
Scott Tolzien3-0So (R)5-8-162.5%107035.7
Total13-13N/A333-180-1154.1%244511188.2
Opponents13-13N/A404-212-1252.5%254515195.8

Rushing
NameAttYardsAvgLongTD
P.J. Hill22611615.113
John Clay1558445.7469
Zach Brown553055.5233
David Gilreath2528511.490 (TD)2
Bill Rentmeester11504.590
Isaac Anderson3217.0190
Dustin Sherer49190.4301
Bradie Ewing4143.581
Scott Tolzien4133.381
Chris Pressley362.030
Allan Evridge2340.2191
Total5672,7454.89031
Opponents4501,7333.8 23

Receiving
NameGPNo.YdsAvgTDLongAvg/G
Garrett Graham114054013.55 49.1
David Gilreath133152016.73 40.0
Isaac Anderson132128613.60 22.0
Travis Beckum62326411.40 44.0
Nick Toon121725715.11 21.4
Kyle Jefferson111418913.50 17.2
Lance Kendricks7614123.50 20.1
P.J. Hill1377210.30 5.5
Maurice Moore656112.20 10.2
Zach Brown128475.90 3.9
Mickey Turner1344611.50 3.5
Elijah Theus52178.51 3.4

Season Summary

Wisconsin once again got off to a fast start at 3-0. However, a horrible loss to Michigan and awful games against Ohio State, Penn State, and Iowa derailed the Badgers and sent them plunging down to 3-4 overall. An upset over ranked Illinois at home evened Wisconsin's record at 4-4, but an awful loss to Michigan State followed and the Badgers fell to 1-5 in the Big Ten almost before they could blink. Wisconsin won the remainder of its conference slate against Indiana and Minnesota, but the Badgers followed that up with a decidedly below average effort and wild win over Cal Poly the next week. At the end of the season, Wisconsin was destroyed 42-13 in the 2008 Champs Sports Bowl by Florida State.

Overall, this was the worst Wisconsin team since the 2001 Badgers, who missed the postseason entirely after a 5-7 season. The failure of the team to live up to lofty expectations (Wisconsin was ranked 8th in the nation before a terrible loss to Michigan) fueled fan discontent, and Bret Bielema would need a much, much better 2009 season; he could not afford to coast on goodwill from his 2006 and 2007 teams.

Regular starters

Team players selected in the 2009 NFL Draft
See also: 2009 NFL Draft
PlayerPositionRoundOverall SelectionNFL Team
Matt ShaughnessyDefensive End371Oakland Raiders
DeAndre LevyLinebacker376Detroit Lions
Kraig UrbikGuard379Pittsburgh Steelers
Travis BeckumTight End3100New York Giants

[9]

References
  1. "Badgers open the season on BTN". University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Athletics. July 2, 2008. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
  2. "Game-by-Game Statistics". University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on September 9, 2011. Retrieved October 12, 2011.
  3. "More night ball for Badgers". University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Athletics. May 31, 2008. Retrieved May 31, 2008.
  4. "Big Ten Announces Five Prime-Time Football Games to Appear on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 During 2008 Season". Big Ten Conference. April 16, 2008. Archived from the original on April 20, 2008. Retrieved April 16, 2008.
  5. "Welcome home:Badgers, Illini kickoff set". University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Athletics. May 10, 2008. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  6. 2008 Schedule Archived February 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  7. "Two Safeties Highlight Badgers' Comeback Over Rival Gophers". ESPN. November 15, 2008. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  8. "Football Roster". University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on November 12, 2006. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
  9. "2009 NFL Draft Listing | Pro-Football-Reference.com". Archived from the original on September 19, 2009.
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