Tag: badgers football

A Wisconsin quarterback announces he is entering the transfer portal

A Badger quarterback enters the transfer portal

After fulfilling a childhood dream by playing for Wisconsin over the past two seasons, Badger quarterback Myles Burkett will take three years of eligibility with him into the transfer portal.

Burkett, who starred at Franklin High School in the Badger State, always dreamt of playing for the Badgers and following in the footsteps of his childhood hero Russell Wilson, and he got to do that. Originally recruited by Paul Chryst’s staff, Burkett thanked both Chryst and the new staff in his farewell post on Twitter.

The move makes sense, as Burkett will seek out a place where he can have a better chance of seeing the field next season. Wisconsin fans will no doubt be rooting for the Badger State native to succeed wherever he ends up next season.

A Wisconsin Badger earns All-Big Ten Special Teams honors

One Badger named to the All-Big Ten Special Teams squad

The Big Ten conference announced all-defense and special teams awards for first, second, and third team as well as honorable mentions, and one Wisconsin Badger made the cut on special teams.

The lone Badger named to the Big Ten Special Teams squad was kicker Nathaniel Vakos, who came to Wisconsin by way of Ohio University and had a solid year as the new starter. Vakos connected on 14 of his 17 field goal attempts and did not miss from less than 40 yards on the entire year.

He was one of Wisconsin’s most consistent players and earned a well-deserved honorable mention shout from the conference.

Wisconsin makes history with their 28-14 win over Minnesota

The Badgers make history in their all-time series against Minnesota

Not only did the Badgers move to 7-5 on the year and keep Minnesota out of a bowl game with their 28-14 win on Saturday, there was also historical significance to Wisconsin coming out on top.

Heading into Saturday, Wisconsin and Minnesota had met an amazing 132 times. What’s even more astounding? In those meetings, the two rivals were even at 62-62-8. With the win on Saturday spurred by Braelon Allen’s 165 yards on the ground, Wisconsin took the all-time series lead at 63-62-8.

The Axe is back home in Madison, and Wisconsin will also extend one of the three longest bowl streaks in the nation to 22 straight years.

WATCH: The Axe is back home, Wisconsin takes down Minnesota

The Axe is back home where it belongs

A rough opening campaign for head coach Luke Fickell was salvaged over the last two weeks, culminating in Wisconsin’s 28-14 win over Minnesota and The Axe returning home to Madison.

The Badgers used the old school to get it done on the road on Saturday, behind 26 carries for 165 yards and a pair of touchdowns from Braelon Allen who was likely playing in his last Battle for the Axe matchup.

For Luke Fickell, it was his first matchup for Paul Bunyan’s Axe, and the trophy will end up in the Madison, Wisconsin trophy case. The Axe is back where it belongs as the new Badger head coach celebrated with his team postgame:

WATCH: Wisconsin kicker Nathanial Vakos is mic’d up during practice

Wisconsin’s kicker is mic’d up

Wisconsin’s new kicker Nathanial Vakos has had a solid season as the Badgers starting kicker in 2023. The Ohio Bobcats transfer is 14-17 on the year and a perfect 26-26 on extra points, with a long field goal of 52 yards. He has been one of the bright spots for a Wisconsin offense that has struggled at times in 2023.

Vakos was the subject of Wisconsin’s weekly “(WI)red” segment, where the Badgers mic up different members of the team. From trying to become the Wisconsin holder, to giving a shoutout to his Badger holder and long snapper, to some kicking of course, here is a look at the new Badger kicker on the latest mic’d up segment:

WATCH: Luke Fickell delivers the message he has given since the spring

Luke Fickell stays true to his message

Coming off of a tough loss to No. 3 Ohio State where in fairness Wisconsin had their chances in the fourth quarter, head coach Luke Fickell reiterated one of his main talking points all season long.

It’s not about how the Badgers are playing at the moment or throughout the start of the year, but whether or not Wisconsin can be playing their best football at the end of the season.

This is something Fickell has stuck to all year long, through the ups and downs of the early part of the season. A Big Ten West crown is still very much a possibility if the Badgers take care of business over the next month. It’s about playing their best football in the weeks ahead:

A look at the top Badgers in the NFL from Week 8

Badgers continue to ball out at the next level

Wisconsin legends continue to show out at the next level and Week 8 had a number of standout performances from former Badgers.

The headliner was the return of Jonathan Taylor, who after contract disputes with the Indianapolis Colts finally returned to the field with 12 carries for 95 yards. Taylor also surpassed the 4,000 career rushing yards mark in the Week 8 matchup.

Jake Ferguson continued to be an essential part of the Cowboys offense, catching a touchdown pass in a runaway win over the Rams. Russell Wilson helped lead his Broncos to an upset win over the Chiefs at Mile High in a game Denver had to have. Here is a look at the top performances from Week 8:

A 2025 Wisconsin target announces his commitment date

A Badger target will commit soon

Wisconsin has continued to be active on the recruiting trail as Luke Fickell prepares to bring in his first class with a full recruiting schedule as head coach of the Badgers.

2025 offensive lineman Easton Ware has the Badgers in his top ten, and will be committing on Wednesday, November 1. Ware is a 6-foot-5 lineman out of Virginia and Liberty Christian Academy. A consensus three-star recruit across recruiting channels, Ware has a top ten that includes Michigan and Notre Dame, two schools Wisconsin feels like they are constantly in recruiting battles with for top targets.

Here is a look at Ware’s full top ten before his commitment on Wednesday:

Braelon Allen leads the Big Ten in this category

The Badger running back was at his best on Saturday

It felt like a defining statement game for Braelon Allen in Wisconsin’s come-from-behind win over Illinois on Saturday. The Badger running back totaled 29 carries and 145 yards on the ground to go along with a touchdown.

Allen is now up to over 100 rushing yards per game, which leads the Big Ten conference by a significant margin. Kyle Monangai of Rutgers is in second place at 93 yards per game, then there is a steep drop off before third and fourth.

Allen is now asked to do even more for the Badgers after Chez Mellusi went down at Purdue. The Badger back will have to be at his best on Saturday when Ohio State visits Madison.

LOOK: Hayden Rucci reacts to his brother Nolan’s game-winning touchdown catch

Hayden Rucci reacts to his brother Nolan’s game-winning touchdown catch

On a season-changing final drive, Wisconsin football dialed up the trickery as Braedyn Locke found offensive lineman Nolan Rucci for a game-winning touchdown catch.

Locke, Braelon Allen, and the Badger offense took over late to put up 18 fourth-quarter points and snatch a victory in a game that looked lost in the third quarter.

Nolan’s older brother Hayden Rucci is a Wisconsin tight end, and was actually blocking for his younger sibling on the game-winning lob.

The best feeling in the world for an offensive lineman may be your one shining moment to score a touchdown, but arguably an even better feeling? Watching and blocking for your brother on that very play: