Wisconsin Badgers vs Northwestern Wildcats Match Player Stats On Nov 05, 2016

The Sports Xchange
Nov 5, 2016

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Corey Clement rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown while Jazz Peavy added another rushing score as No. 8 Wisconsin claimed a 21-7 Big Ten victory over Northwestern on Saturday at Ryan Field.

The Badgers (7-2, 4-2 in the Big Ten West) won their third straight game, while the Wildcats (4-5, 3-3 Big Ten West) suffered their second consecutive loss.

Wisconsin outgained Northwestern 190-39 on the ground and piled up 333 yards total offense to 316 for the Wildcats in front of 42,016 fans on a sunny afternoon at Ryan Field.

The Wildcats' only score was a 13-yard second quarter touchdown pass from quarterback Clayton Thorson to Austin Carr. Thorson was 28 of 51 for 277 yards, while Carr grabbed 12 passes for 132 yards.

Wisconsin kicker Andrew Endicott was 2-for-4 on field goals and added an extra point.

Saturday's game got off to a sluggish start, as Wisconsin stalled deep in Northwestern territory on its second drive of the game and missed on a 35-yard field goal attempt by Endicott.

But Endicott made up for the miss with 11:11 left in the second quarter with a 40-yard field golf for a 3-0 Wisconsin lead.

Wisconsin extended the lead to 10-0 on Peavy's 46-yard touchdown run with 7:33 showing to wrap up a five-play, 68-yard drive.

Northwestern broke the shutout in the final minute of the half, driving 87 yards in eight plays in 62 seconds to score on a 15-yard touchdown pass from Thorson to Carr with 39 seconds left. Jack Mitchell's extra point trimmed Wisconsin's lead to 10-7.

Wisconsin drove to the Northwestern 10 midway through the third quarter but got no closer, settling instead for Endicott's 28-yard field goal and a 13-7 lead.

But Endicott's fourth try of the afternoon -- a 51-yarder with 1:13 left in the third quarter -- was unsuccessful.

Thorson and Carr combined on a 32-yard pass play to the Badgers' 30-yard line as the third quarter neared an end. But Conor Sheehy sacked Thorson early in the fourth and caused a fumble, which D'Cota Dixon of Wisconsin recovered and returned to the Wildcat 45.

Nine plays later, Clement capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown run and Alec Ingold's two-point conversion run opened a 21-7 lead with 8:57 left in regulation that held up the rest of the way.

NOTES: With wins over No. 9 Nebraska and No. 15 LSU, the Wisconsin is one of only three teams with two victories over teams in the current Top 15. ... Wisconsin's two losses -- both in October -- came against ranked teams, then-No. 4 Michigan (14-7) and then-No. 2 Ohio State (30-23 in overtime). ... Last week's overtime victory over No. 9 Nebraska made the Badgers bowl-eligible for the 15th straight season, the longest streak of any Big Ten program. ... Wisconsin is home next Saturday against Illinois. ... Northwestern had its three-game winning streak snapped with last Saturday's 24-20 loss at Ohio State. ... The Wildcats travel to Purdue next week. ... The Wildcats entered Saturday with four straight home wins over the Badgers dating to 1999. ... Wildcat WR Austin Carr had a six-game run of touchdown receptions end last week but it was still the nation's longest streak coming into Saturday.