Jack Coan of the Wisconsin Badgers ended the 2019 college football regular season in a very different place, and in a very different way, compared to his worst moments in the second half of October.
Coan wasn’t particularly consistent. He wasn’t especially precise. He certainly couldn’t have been viewed as a dynamic, equation-changing quarterback in the latter half of October, when Wisconsin was ambushed by Illinois and couldn’t muster much of anything against Ohio State in Columbus. Was Coan going to recede into memory as a forgettable quarterback with modest talent and unremarkable performances in big games, or was he going to grow and not give up on his team, his season, or — most of all — himself?
Jack Coan clearly answered those questions against Minnesota, but just in case anyone doubted that he could play equally well (actually, even BETTER) against the big, bad Buckeyes of Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game, Coan offered his response: YES, I can and I will be better.
His first half on Saturday night in Lucas Oil Stadium was his best half of football as a Wisconsin Badger. He hit all the right notes. He made all the right decisions. He showed a new level of elusiveness and athleticism in the pocket. He made Ohio State look slow. How many quarterbacks do that?
Coan stood at the center of a brilliant first half. If Quintez Cephus had made a few more catches, Wisconsin might have scored even more than 21 first-half points against the Buckeyes. As it was, Coan threw down a standard of performance which gave his team a chance to win. Yes, Coan was a little less precise in the second half, but for the most part, the players around him stopped making the routine plays which had put UW ahead by 14 points. If a punt isn’t botched, if a field goal had been made, and if a 3rd and 18 had been stopped, this game would have come down to the wire. Coan didn’t get the chance to lead UW on a game-winning drive.
The final drive he actually led, though, was symbolic of his performance: resolute, tough, fearless.
If you are an older football fan, this next video will be familiar. If you are a younger fan, you should watch it because of its cinematic brilliance. NFL Films created such a large and towering mythology surrounding professional football as the Super Bowl became a cultural phenomenon in the 1970s. Videos like this next one show why.
Go to the 19:45 mark of this video. You will find these words when Roger Staubach and the Dallas Cowboys were desperately trying to come back against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XIII:
“As they drove down the field again, it was an appropriate occasion to summon up the old cliches which salute gallant losers who play on for pride and self-respect when all hope of victory has vanished. But NO. This was a team that truly believed it still could win.”
– John Facenda, NFL Films
“Battle of Champions” – Super Bowl XIII documentary
January 1979
That, folks, was Jack Coan on the final drive, heaving the ball into traffic because he had to, and couldn’t play it safe. That was Jack Coan on the final play of the game, running furiously toward the end zone, willing himself toward the goal line with all his might, trying to notch another touchdown which might have been the difference between the Badgers getting the Rose Bowl and falling short.
Jack Coan spilled his guts. He gave his body and soul to Wisconsin and his teammates. He played like a champion and showed the heart of a warrior.
Is this hyperbolic embellishment? It sounds like it… but when you think about the man who played very ordinary football against Illinois and Ohio State in October, and you then consider what Jack Coan has become — and how he comported himself these last two weeks against Minnesota and Ohio State — this transformation into a bold leader of the Wisconsin offense makes Coan a Badger we won’t forget. This 2019 season has had many heroes, but Coan’s ability to step up in the two biggest games of the season will not soon be forgotten by Wisconsin fans.
Jack Coan did not fade into the mists of obscurity. He gained a lasting place in the hearts of Badger fans everywhere.