Tag: paul bunyan’s axe

Former Wisconsin RB James White had a critique of the Badgers’ postgame Axe celebration

Former Wisconsin RB James White had a critique of the Badgers’ postgame Axe celebration

Wisconsin defeated rival Minnesota 28-14 Saturday to reclaim Paul Bunyan’s Axe, finish the regular season 7-5 and carry positive momentum into bowl season.

After what has been a disappointing year one under Luke Fickell, Saturday represented a step in the right direction with this season winding down.

That, and it was the team’s best all-around effort of the year by a long shot. The offense found success through the air and on the ground, Braelon Allen was terrific and the defense shut down Athan Kaliakmanis and the Minnesota offense. In many ways, Saturday’s performance was what we expected to see all year from Fickell’s team.

Nevertheless, escaping a year with a win over Minnesota makes the early-season struggles feel much better. Especially given this was the Badgers’ first road win over Minnesota since 2019, and the first win over the Golden Gophers since 2020.

The postgame celebration was expectedly quite rowdy:

Wisconsin legend James White, now an analyst on Big Ten Network, did have one critique of that celebration, however:

White went 4-0 against Minnesota during his time in Madison. He is more than qualified to take a sarcastic shot at the Badgers’ chopping mechanics.

If that’s the conversation postgame, it means the four quarters of football went pretty well.

PHOTOS: Wisconsin falls to Minnesota 23-16 in regular-season finale

Photos from Wisconsin football’s 23-16 loss to Minnesota in the regular-season finale:

The Wisconsin Badgers were unable to take back Paul Bunyan’s Axe in a disappointing 23-16 loss to the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Camp Randall Stadium. The Badgers played without several key starters including running back Braelon Allen, and outside linebacker Nick Herbig that missed the first half.

Wisconsin had another solid defensive performance, that was able to limit the scoring of the Golden Gophers. The Wisconsin defense got after Minnesota quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, who was sacked three times on the day. They also were able to slow down the Minnesota rushing attack with eight tackles for loss.

The defensive effort was not enough to lead the Badgers to victory, as the offense struggled to move the ball throughout the game. Wisconsin went only 5-16 on third downs, and a costly interception from quarterback Graham Mertz late in the game proved too much for the Badgers to overcome.

Below are photos from Wisconsin football’s 23-16 loss to Minnesota in the regular-season finale:

How to watch: Wisconsin vs. Minnesota

How to watch, listen and stream the Wisconsin Badgers against the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Saturday:

The Wisconsin Badgers will face off against the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Saturday afternoon to battle not only for Paul Bunyan’s Axe but for the Badgers to clinch their spot in the Big Ten Championship game.

Related: PHOTOS: The last time Wisconsin played Minnesota for a trip to Indianapolis

Wisconsin will rely on true freshman running back Braelon Allen against the Golden Gophers, as he will be looking to tie Jonathan Taylor’s program record of eight consecutive 100-yard rushing games. On the defensive side of the ball, Wisconsin will look to their fantastic front seven to stop the Gophers offense led by quarterback Tanner Morgan.

It will be another great battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe to watch, as the Badgers will try to close out their regular season on a high note against head coach P.J. Fleck and the Golden Gophers.

Matchup: Wisconsin Badgers at Minnesota Golden Gophers

Where: Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.

When: Saturday, Nov. 27, 2021, at 3 p.m. CST

Where to watch: Fox

  • Announcers:
    • Play-by-Play: Tim Brando
    • Analyst: Spencer Tillman

Where to stream: Fox Sports App or foxsports.com/live

Where to listen: Badger Sports Network on the Varsity Network app or Sirius Satellite Radio 111, XM 196

  • Announcers:
    • Play-by-Play: Matt Lepay
    • Analyst: Mike Lucas
    • Sideline Reporter: Patrick Herb

Contact/Follow us @TheBadgersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin news, notes, opinion and analysis.

Everything you need to know about the 2021 Minnesota Golden Gophers

Everything you need to know about the 2021 Minnesota Golden Gophers

One final game now separates the 8-3 Wisconsin Badgers from yet another Big Ten West division title a birth in the Big Ten Championship. The foe is Minnesota, a 7-4 football team that lost control of the Big Ten West when it lost to Illinois a few weeks ago.

It’s the battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe, so neither team should have trouble finding energy for this game. But both schools are still alive in the race for the West, as Minnesota can advance with a win and an Iowa loss to Nebraska.

Related: Big Ten Power Rankings after Week 12 — Wisconsin gets one step closer

Before we dive deeper into the matchup, here’s everything you need to know about the 2021 Minnesota Golden Gophers:

One of Minnesota’s primary running backs is nicknamed “Bucky”

One of Minnesota’s primary running backs is nicknamed “Bucky”

The week of preparation leading into the battle between Wisconsin and Minnesota for Paul Bunyan’s Axe always has its fair share of shots from either side.

Wisconsin players say they don’t like Minnesota, Minnesota players say they don’t like Wisconsin and the cycle continues. Then, of course, Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst does the usual “I appreciate the opportunity to play a well-coached football team with good players.”

Related: Big Ten Power Rankings after Week 12 — Wisconsin gets one step closer

There is one wrinkle to the matchup this year to note. While watching film of Minnesota’s loss to Iowa a few weeks ago I kept hearing the announcers say “Bucky.”

Why was that? Well, it’s the nickname of Mar’Keise Irving, one of Minnesota’s primary running backs.

Or, it was. Fleck said back in September Irving’s Minnesota teammates changed the nickname due to their hatred for the Wisconsin program and mascot.

Irving has rushed for 531 yards and 4 touchdowns on 102 carries this season after climbing the depth chart due to cluster injuries at the position. The former four-star recruit figures to pair up with Ky Thomas to lead Minnesota’s rushing attack Saturday against Wisconsin.

Regardless of how he plays, I cannot remember a time in the battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe when one of the players went by the name of the opposing team’s mascot.

Contact/Follow us @TheBadgersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin news, notes, opinion and analysis.

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What Minnesota HC P.J. Fleck said about Wisconsin after the game

Minnesota Gopher head coach P.J. Fleck spoke to the media after the Wisconsin Badgers’ overtime victory Saturday. The press conference was

The Wisconsin Badgers needed overtime yesterday to defeat rival Minnesota and retain Paul Bunyan’s Axe.

It was a much-needed win for the team as they moved to 16-1 against Minnesota over the last 17 years and moved their 2020 record to .500 after what has been an extremely challenging season.

Related: Studs and duds from the Badgers’ 20-17 victory over Minnesota

Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck spoke after the game about how his team performed and about the Wisconsin team he faced–though he didn’t give a quote close to as memorable as his one from earlier last week.

He started his comments by giving credit to Paul Chryst’s team and the job they did on the field.

“I gotta give them credit,” Fleck said. “They’re a well-coached football team with a lot of really good players. Congratulations to them on winning the Axe.”

Related: Five takeaways from Wisconsin’s victory over Minnesota

He continued to talk about how tough the loss was for his team.

“Obviously a devastated locker room,” Fleck said. “Very disappointed, sad, but not pouty. They’re just sad that they didn’t win. And after a hard-fought rivalry loss like that, when you walk into that locker room that’s, I’m not saying that’s what you want to see, but people care. This one means a lot…I told our team that I love them, I’m proud of them, disappointed, take the losing as learning and then we’re going to be really good when we come back in January.”

Many of the questions reporters asked the Gopher head coach were about missed opportunities on the field, how challenging this season has been and what he can take moving forward. He did, however, note the effort level both teams brought to the field yesterday.

“I thought our team executed well, they played hard, they played up to their capabilities, they fought, they scrapped,” Fleck said. “You know both teams. It was a great football game. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. That’s why it’s a rivalry game. We were 2-touchdown underdogs and you would never believe that with these players.”

Both Fleck’s Gophers and the Badgers now enter Bowl Season where a lot of question marks still surround whether the teams will choose to play.

Even if this is the last we’ll see of the 2020 Wisconsin Badgers, their resilience and determination were on full display as the group was able to put a tough regular season in the past and finish with a hard-fought victory against their rival.