Smash Mouth Melee

My bullish prediction last week clearly failed to stand up in a nail-biter where the outcome was clearly in question until Shaunnessy's sack on the final play. More of the same this week, particularly if Bucky gets off to a slow start like last season in Happy Valley. I don't see a first quarter score by either team tomorrow, and a narrow UW lead of 7-3 at halftime.

More of the same in the second half as yards are tough to come by for Hill and Co. on the ground. Beckum, Crooks, Swann, and Hubbard must all step up for Bucky to prevail. Containing Hunt on the ground and completely shutting down the Nittany Lions passing game will be key on the other side of the ball. Special teams rise to the fore in low scoring games, and while Debauche and Melhoff are stellar, our coverage and return units will be under the microscope. Assuming no major ST gaffes, Bucky holds on the win 17-10, with #92 closing the door with a sack on a late PSU drive. (Looks like I'm in line with the experts)

All-Sport Rankings

UW is ranked #4 beind Stanford, Cal, and Wake Forest (?). Michigan is #5, OSU #13, PSU #14, and Minnesota #21. The Badger cross country team won its 8th straight BT title last weekend.

Linebacker U?

Penn State comes to Madison with a heralded LB corps, but UW's trio gives them a run for their money, literally. All time under 4.5 in the 40 (Casillas leads the pack at 4.37), and have proven equally adept against both the run and pass. Zalewski still misses too many tackles for my taste, but his 3rd quarter pick last Saturday was the turning point in Bucky's come-from-behind win.

Sparty Sinking

John L. Smith's tenure as coach at MSU has aparently come to an end. When the highlight of your season is a comeback against Northwestern the verdict is a given, especially given the collapse at home against ND, handing the Illini their first conference W in two seasons, and being thrashed on the road by Indiana. Poor Smith, for he'll "earn" the final $3.1 million in the last two years of his contract doing absolutely nothing. Speculation is that Mariucchi will reunite with his high school friend Tom Izzo.

Am I wrong in my contention that his biggest win was knocking off a then-undefeated Bucky 49-14 in 2004?

How Do You Spell Relief?

Hint: I'm not talking about Rolaids. PJ Hill practiced yesterday to the surprise of RB coach John Settle. Although he was held out of contact drills, he did more than usual for a Tuesday session and feels he has something to prove against Penn State's stout run defense.

PJ in Saturday's Sandwich?

This from the Chicago Sun-Times this morning:
Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema said Monday he doesn't think star running back P.J. Hill took offense when Bielema said on his post-game radio show that Hill "needs to take some toughen-up pills."

Hill missed much of the second half of the Badgers' victory Saturday against Illinois with an injury suffered in the first half. Bielema had indicated on his Sunday TV show that he expected Hill to play Saturday against Penn State.

But he said Monday that Hill injured nerves in his neck and would be re-evaluated later that day. Bielema also said he didn't know whether Hill would be able to play this weekend.

"I know he's going to be able to battle himself back," he added.

Can Bucky beat Penn State without Hill? I share Bill's skepticism that Lance Smith can shoulder the rushing load alone, and have as much confidence in Rowan as the number of yards he gained on five carries Saturday...a big fat zero. A close game shifts in the Nittany Lions favor without PJ in the backfield.

Lance Smith

I was pretty disappointed in Smith this past weekend. Seemed like he wanted to bounce it to the outside on every play and would get caught without a gain. 3.6 yard average is terrible for a badger running back. Hopefully Pj will be back to full strength against Penn state or it could be a long day on the ground for the badgers.

Shaughnessey Stands Out

Matt Shaughnessy emerged last season as a freshman on an injury-riddled defense. His athleticism was obvious from the start, and his technique has developed over the course of this season as he has now fully recovered from a knee injury that sidelined him during the Iowa game last season. Granted he still needs to add weight to his lean frame, but I would argue that he will emerge as the top defensive lineman the program has ever produced, better than Davey, Burke, Bryant, and James. The JS gave him a glowing reveiew for his onfield intelligence and impact play in the game that went down to the final snap, a sack of the Juice by #92.

"Sophomore defensive end Matt Shaughnessy draws raves for his athletic ability but his football IQ is more impressive.

Shaughnessy recorded three tackles for loss, including two sacks, and eight total tackles. His best play came on the Illini's next-to-last series, when he threw receiver Derrick McPhearson for a 1-yard loss on a reverse.

On second and 9 from their 47, the Illini deployed four wide receivers, with three to the right. McPhearson, the middle receiver on the right, moved forward 1 yard at the snap but then reversed his field and angled back toward quarterback Juice Williams. Williams was moving to his right, along with a running back, as if he planned to run the option.

Shaughnessy, the backside end, kept his head up as he slowly slid down the line and looked for anything coming back his way. Because he did that, Shaughnessy recognized the reverse before McPhearson caught the pitch at the Illinois 41. Shaughnessy, who was at the Illini 45, then turned and ran stride-for-stride with McPhearson toward the sideline. He brought him down at the 46 and the Illini eventually punted.

Shaughnessy's technique was flawless."