The Wisconsin Badgers fell 17-7 to the No. 12 UCLA Bruins on Saturday, losing their second game of the season in a disappointing performance.
It was especially rough for the offense, as Colton Joseph had just 66 passing yards as Wisconsin got just seven points. Penalties were a common theme, and the Badgers struggled on third downs while dealing with a 9.4-yard average distance to go.
Here are the snap counts and PFF grades for Wisconsin’s offense from the loss to UCLA.
Quarterbacks
Colton Joseph – Snap Count: [51], Grade: 45.6
It was a rough day for Colton Joseph. While he certainly was the key to the run game, the senior continued to struggle as a passer, completing just 6 of 16 passes for 66 yards. He missed his fair share of chances, but his receivers also struggled to separate.
UCLA’s defensive front and creative pressure packages were what caught my eye watching them leading up to this game. They blitzed Colton Joseph on 16 of his 21 dropbacks. On those plays, Joseph was just 3 for 11 for 33 yards, which included three throwaways and four sacks.
One thing that seems clear is that there’s a problem with identifying and throwing hot routes in the passing game. Either it’s a design flaw or a Joseph issue, but the Badgers need to find different ways to combat pressure better.
Just a bad overall day from the passing game.
Running Backs
Darrion Dupree – Snap Count: [31], Grade: 62.0
Abu Sama III – Snap Count: [19], Grade: 68.0
Bryan Jackson II – Snap Count: [1], Grade: 60.0
Wisconsin went with a two-headed punch with Darrion Dupree and Abu Sama. Dupree had just 20 yards on six carries, while Sama had 34 yards on six carries. Dupree had just 0.16 yards before contact per rush.
It was a similar theme here as well: Wisconsin was more successful on outside runs and continued to struggle generating any push between the tackles. A part of that is the lack of respect for the passing game from opposing defenses. The other is the struggles in execution from Wisconsin’s offensive line.
The backs only had 12 combined carries, but that’s because Colton Joseph had 15 of his own.
Wide Receivers
Chris Brooks Jr. – Snap Count: [34], Grade: 68.4
Tyrell Henry – Snap Count: [24], Grade: 58.4
Eugene Hilton Jr. – Snap Count: [18], Grade: 60.8
Jaylon Domingeaux – Snap Count: [17], Grade: 53.3
Malachi Coleman – Snap Count: [16], Grade: 42.8
Shamar Rigby – Snap Count: [12], Grade: 57.6
It was a really rough game for Wisconsin’s wide receivers. With Jaylon Domingeaux in the fold, Wisconsin rotated six deep at receiver.
No wideout had more than two catches, with Domingeaux’s 23-yard catch on Wisconsin’s second drive being the lone big play that the Badgers got in the air on the day.
Separation remains a big issue for the receivers. Wisconsin also had some rough drops, including one from Malachi Coleman on a potential touchdown on the drive that resulted in a missed field goal. Coleman had an ugly 42.8 PFF grade on the day.
Henry also had a drop on a bubble screen that would’ve resulted in a solid gain and instead killed another drive. Just not a good day from the group that had the most questions entering the season.
Tight Ends
Grant Stec – Snap Count: [24], Grade: 64.4
Ryan Schwendeman – Snap Count: [24], Grade: 55.2
Jacob Harris – Snap Count: [21], Grade: 67.0
Emmett Bork – Snap Count: [14], Grade: 31.8
The snaps here remained similar to Week 5, as the Badgers went heavier with their focus on the run game.
I did think there were some solid perimeter blocks on the runs to the edge, which worked on Saturday. But the Badgers did not consistently go there, and there really wasn’t much production in the pass game either. The separation concerns extend to Harris as well.
Offensive Line
Stylz Blackmon – Snap Count: [51], Grade: 46.8
Emerson Mandell – Snap Count: [51], Grade: 67.8
Kevin Heywood – Snap Count: [51], Grade: 71.6
Colin Cubberly – Snap Count: [51], Grade: 62.6
PJ Wilkins – Snap Count: [51], Grade: 57.9
Not a great game from the offensive line from a run-blocking perspective. The biggest issue on this unit all year long has been PJ Wilkins. Wisconsin elected to start Stylz Blackmon at center and keep Wilkins in the lineup with Austin Kawecki not playing, rather than have Ryan Cory, who played quite well against Michigan State, at center.
Wilkins gave up three pressures, while Blackmon gave up two as well.
Still, I thought, as a whole, Wisconsin protected the quarterback decently enough. Yes, Colton Joseph was pressured on 11 of his 21 dropbacks, but he also continued to hold the ball, averaging a 3.43-second time to throw against a really good UCLA defense.
There’s a lot to look at for the Badgers from this game. They’ll need fixes soon with USC and Iowa being their next two matchups.
