Washington State hosts No. 19 Wisconsin for marquee game of nonconference schedule

Sep. 9—Third quarter

10:13 — WSU 24, Wisc. 9: Rough 3-and-out by the Cougars, who nearly commit two safeties. Badgers return the punt to the WSU 35, where they set up with great field position.

10:54 — WSU 24, Wisc. 9: Cougars get a stop after an 8-play drive by the Badgers. Wisconsin gets a great punt and downs it at the WSU 1.

Halftime

An excellent first half on both sides of the ball by Washington State has resulted in a 24-9 lead over Wisconsin at Gesa Field.

Cameron Ward is 14 of 20 for 86 yards and two touchdowns to lead the offense. Maybe more important has been the defense.

The Cougars have shut down the Badgers run game, allowing just 25 yards on 16 attempts. Defensive end Ron Stone has a pair of strip sacks — both recovered by fellow senior Brennan Jackson — with one recovered for a touchdown. Wisconsin has settled for three field goals.

Wisconsin will receive the second half kickoff.

Second quarter

0:24 — WSU 24, Wisc. 9: Badgers answer with a third field goal before halftime, this time from 29 yards.

2:08 — WSU 24, Wisc. 6: Stone and Jackson do it again. A strip sack and recovery on consecutive possessions, though, this time Jackson picks up the loose ball in the endzone for a touchdown.

Game changing plays by the senior linemen.

2:49 — WSU 17, Wisc. 6: Cougars can't take advantage of plus territory, and have to punt after Ward takes a sack on third down. Badgers start around their own 5 yard line.

4:58 — WSU 17, Wisc. 6: Stone sacks Mordecai and forces a fumble, recovered by Jackson at the Badgers 34. Big play by the Cougars senior defensive ends.

7:14 — WSU 17, Wisc. 6: Janikowski makes a 46-yard field goal after the Cougars drive stalls. Ward had Hernandez open in the endzone, but just overthrew him.

10:17 — WSU 14, Wisc. 6: Cougars bend but don't break again, holding the Badgers to another field goal, this time from inside 40 yards.

Mordecai is 7 of 10 for 70 yards for Wisconsin, as the Cougars are forcing the Badgers to beat them with the pass. Wisconsin has rushed 10 times for 29 yards — 17 yards by Mordecai.

14:10 — WSU 14, Wisc. 3: Victor catches a 1-yard touchdown to cap a 5-play drive. WSU looking comfortable and confident early.

Cougars caught the Badgers off guard with a trick play to set up the score, as Victor completed a 39-yard pass to Mathers.

First quarter

1:07 — WSU 7, Wisc. 3: Mordecai moves the Badgers down the field, but the Cougars hold them to a field goal. Lahm's 49-yard attempt is good, despite the Badgers losing six yards on third down.

Victor returns the kickoff 83 yards, but a holding penalty brings the play back. WSU starts on its 12.

5:34 — WSU 7, Wisc. 0: Ward finds Williams open in the flat for a 4-yard touchdown pass. Excellent start for the Cougars, as Ward is 7 of 10 for 75 yards.

Ward set up the score with a perfect downfield pass into the arms of Williams for 38 yards.

9:36 — WSU 0, Wisc. 0: Cougars defense forces a 3-and-out. Bertrams punts 41 yards to the WSU 38.

Good pressure and swarming tackling by the Cougars defense on the first possession. They'll pick up around where they punted on their last drive.

11:32 — WSU 0, Wisc 0: Cougars pick up two first downs, but their drive stalls. Haberer punts 49 yards to the Wisc. 15.

Ward completed a pass to Watson early in the drive to convert on 3rd and 13.

15:00 — WSU 0, Wisc. 0: Badgers win the toss and defer to the second half. WSU's offense will take the field first.

Pregame

Washington State welcomes No. 19 Wisconsin for the marquee game of its nonconference schedule Saturday, and will have a large share of national attention on Pullman — and an athletic department hung out to dry in the shift of conference realignment — when the teams kick off at 4:30 p.m. on ABC.

The Cougars rolled to a 50-24 road victory over Colorado State in Week 1, with quarterback Cameron Ward shaking off early inconsistency for a 451-yard, three-touchdown game. Meanwhile, Wisconsin stuck to the ground, piling up 314 rushing yards in a 38-17 home win over Buffalo.

Washington State will host a rare game against a Big Ten team. That doesn't mean this is unfamiliar territory.

The Cougars beat then-No. 19 Wisconsin last season at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, relying on their defense for a 17-14 win.

The Badgers have a new coach, a new offensive philosophy and a new quarterback. But again, this one will likely come down to defense. Wisconsin enters as a 6-point favorite, according to VegasInsider.

Washington State, which will honor late former coach Mike Leach before the game, has the home field advantage this time — a sellout at Martin Stadium — and a crowd with reason to show Pullman is home to a Power 5 program.

Series history

Washington State is 1-2 all-time against Wisconsin, winning its first game in the series last season. The Badgers beat the Cougars in Madison twice before, 42-21 in 2007 and 35-26 in 1976.

Team stats

Scoring

WSU

Wisc.

Points Per Game

50

38

Points Allowed Per Game

24

17

Total Yards

556

503

Yards Passing

446

189

Yards Rushing

90

314

Yards Allowed

357

316

Pass Yards Allowed

320

194

Rush Yards Allowed

37

122

Individual leaders

PASSING

Att.-Comp.

Yards

TD

Int.

Cameron Ward (WSU)

37-49

451

3

0

Tanner Mordecai (Wisc.)

24-31

189

1

2

RUSHING

Carries

Yards

TD

Cameron Ward (WSU)

13

40

1

Chez Mellusi (Wisc.)

13

157

2

RECEIVING

Receptions

Yards

TD

Lincoln Victor (WSU)

11

168

0

Will Pauling (Wisc.)

5

55

0

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