Wisconsin 31, Rutgers 10: Hopkins pulls away after a 13-10 half
Ryan Hopkins threw three touchdowns and Wisconsin shut out Rutgers after halftime, covering the 19.5-point spread at Camp Randall.
For a half, Rutgers had Wisconsin right where it wanted. The Badgers led only 13-10 at the break, and the Rutgers defense had held them to field goals on three straight scoring drives.
Then Ryan Hopkins finished the job. The Wisconsin quarterback went 18 of 24 for 241 yards and three touchdowns, two of them after halftime, and the Badgers scored the game's last 18 points to win 31-10 at Camp Randall Stadium. Rutgers did not score after the second quarter.
How it was won
Wisconsin struck first. Hopkins found Eugene Hilton Jr. for a 21-yard touchdown with 6:25 left in the first quarter, and Gavin Lahm added the extra point for a 7-0 lead. Rutgers answered with a 45-yard Jack Scullion field goal with 30 seconds left in the quarter.
The second quarter traded blows. Lahm hit from 51 yards at 8:09 to make it 10-3. AJ Surace then tied it with a 30-yard touchdown pass to Dyzier Carter at 3:21. Wisconsin moved back in front on Lahm's 26-yard field goal with 24 seconds left in the half.
The third quarter is where it turned. Lahm kicked his third field goal, from 22 yards, at 4:52 to make it 16-10. With 1:29 left in the quarter, Hopkins hit Ryan Schwendeman for an 11-yard touchdown and then threw to Hilton for the two-point conversion, pushing the lead to 24-10. Early in the fourth, Hopkins connected with Jacob Harris for 66 yards at 10:08, and Lahm's kick closed the scoring.
Lahm accounted for 11 points: field goals of 51, 26 and 22 yards plus two extra points.
The box score shows the gap in efficiency rather than time of possession. Rutgers held the ball for 32:25 and committed no turnovers, but managed 255 total yards and converted 4 of 13 third downs. Wisconsin had the ball for 27:35 and still out-gained Rutgers 363 to 255, with 21 first downs to 15. The Badgers' one turnover did not cost them.
Shamar Rigby led Wisconsin with 4 catches for 71 yards. Harris needed only 2 catches for his 70 yards. Hilton ran 3 times for 39 yards and Abu Sama III added 35 yards on 9 carries as Wisconsin rushed for 122.
For Rutgers, Surace went 14 of 24 for 161 yards and the touchdown. Ben Black III caught 6 passes for 70 yards. Antwan Raymond carried 15 times for 56 yards and Clay Thevenin 10 times for 40, for 94 rushing yards in total.
Against the number
Wisconsin closed as a 19.5-point favorite and won by 21, covering by a point and a half. The Harris touchdown in the fourth quarter was the difference against the spread.
The total closed at 45.5. With 41 points scored, the under came in by 4.5, helped by Rutgers going scoreless in the second half and three Wisconsin drives ending in field goals.
On the moneyline, Wisconsin closed at -1100 and Rutgers at +700. Odds history and the closing market are on the game page.
What's next
Wisconsin moves to 6-3 and steadies itself after a 30-0 loss at Iowa the week before. The Badgers travel to Maryland on Saturday, November 14 (FS1).
Rutgers falls to 2-7 with a third straight loss, following a 21-28 defeat to Michigan and a 14-42 loss at Northwestern. The Scarlet Knights host Nebraska on Saturday, November 14 (BTN). Their last Big Ten win came at Maryland, 37-30, the same opponent Wisconsin faces next.
