Wisconsin football insider: What to make of the Badgers' final test before Big Ten play

MADISON – A recap of Wisconsin’s 35-14 victory over Georgia Southern on Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium.

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Badgers fans can breathe now that they’ve escaped the Eagles' upset bid. A win is a win and given last week’s loss at Washington State, you shouldn’t nitpick too much about how it came about. Credit UW for a strong second half and kudos to the defense for forcing six turnovers. But it’s no secret the team will have to play well in both halves to win games in the Big Ten.

Turning point came when UW committed to Braelon Allen and ground game in third quarter

Wisconsin had 46 rushing yards in the first half. It had 124 in the third quarter when it turned a 14-7 deficit into a 28-14 lead and finished the second half with 161 rushing yards in 23 carries. On the Badgers’ game-tying drive, Allen rushed three times for 32 yards in a five-play, 58-yard possession. The next drive UW got the ball, it gained 27 of the 40 yards in a six-play drive on the ground with QB Tanner Mordecai showing his speed with an 18-yard TD run. And on the Badgers’ fourth TD drive, Allen (36) and Mellusi (10) accounted for 46 yards of a 10-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a 2-yard scoring run by Allen.

THUMBS UP

Hunter Wohler, Braelon Allen, James Thompson and Trey Wedig do job for Wisconsin

*Hunter Wohler has emerged as the biggest playmaker for the defense. His third-quarter interception in the end zone was a thing of beauty. The Muskego High School graduate finished the afternoon with two interceptions, one sack and double-digit tackles (10) for the third straight game.

*Credit Braelon Allen with patience. He had just one touch in the first quarter and just four carries in the first half but made the most of his chances during the final two quarters.

*Defensive end James Thompson made a big impact for the second straight week. He had just three tackles, but his pass deflection resulted in linebacker C.J. Goetz's interception in the third quarter. The turnover led to UW's go-ahead touchdown.

*Kettle Moraine High School graduate Trey Wedig continued to prove his value through his versatility. He rotated series at both guard positions. He was in on UW's first touchdown drive when from the right side as well as its second early in the second half when he was playing on the left side.

THUMBS DOWN

UW fails to cash in on early turnovers, allows big plays in secondary

*Where were UW’s points off the takeaways in the first half? The Badgers went 0 for 3 in that category during the first two quarters with just two first downs on the three possessions.

*The Badgers were slow out the blocks again. A 7-7 tie at the half wasn’t the response expected following last week’s Washington State loss.

*The secondary won its share of battles, but it also gave up four plays of 20 yards or longer, including a 25-yard touchdown in the third quarter that gave Georgia Southern a 14-7 lead.

Wisconsin football schedule: Badgers begin Big Ten play at Purdue

UW will kickoff of conference play in West Lafayette, Indiana, at 6 p.m. Friday. The Boilermakers faced Syracuse on Saturday night, but entered the weekend 1-1 with a 39-35 loss to Fresno State in Week 1 and a 24-17 victory at Virginia Tech in Week 2.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin insider: Sizing up where UW stands before first Big Ten game