Last Saturday, the Wisconsin Badgers played Michigan State in the first ever Big Ten Championship game. It was a rematch of one of the best college football games of all time that took place in October.
What was at stake? Oh, just a bid to play in the granddaddy of them all, the Rose Bowl. Both teams came into the game 10-2 with high-powered offenses led by two great quarterbacks. The Badgers also had Heisman finalist Montee Ball.
The game got off to a fast start for the Badgers when they scored on their first three drives of the game. The first score came when Russell Wilson hit Jeff Duckworth on a three-yard touchdown throw. Michigan State answered back with a touchdown of their own to make it seven all.
Heisman hopeful Monte Ball scored the next two touchdowns for the Badgers on a pair of six-yard runs, adding to his astonishing season-high total.
The second quarter was owned by Michigan State. BJ Cunningham caught two touchdowns from Kirk Cousins and the extra point on the second touchdown was a display of trickery. They faked the extra point and ran it in for a two-point conversion to make it 22-21 MSU. They added another touchdown to make the score 29-21 at intermission.
The third quarter got off to a great start for the Badgers. They scored at the nine-minute mark when Russell Wilson found Jordan Abbredaris on a 42-yard touchdown pass to bring Bucky within one point of MSU.
Michigan State added a score, however, when Cousins hooked up with Cunningham on another touchdown through the air.
The Badgers scored first in the exciting fourth quarter when Montee Ball scored on a five-yard touchdown run. The score was now 34-36 after the Badgers failed a two-point conversion attempt. Michigan State added a field goal to make the score 39-34 MSU.
The Badgers' next drive was a momentum-changer. Russell Wilson connected with Jacob Pederson on a fourth down play with six yards to go. The Badgers would go on to score with 3:28 left in the half on a Montee Ball jaunt from seven yards out. They added a two-point conversion to go up 42-39. Michigan State's final drive stalled when they had a holding penalty on a long pass. The Badgers would eventually get the ball back and take three consecutive knees to win the game to make it to their second consecutive Rose Bowl.
The Rose Bowl is scheduled for Jan. 2 and the Badgers will be playing another high-powered offense in Oregon. With Lamichael James at running back and Darron Thomas under center, the Ducks are one of the most electrifying teams in the country. If the Badgers are going to win, they're going to have to give them a good dose of Montee Ball, and Russell Wilson is going to have to continue his good decision-making. The defense is going to have to contain James and limit the amount of big plays.
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