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Badgers survive tough season opener against Western Michigan

Vaseline August 31, 2024

MADISON – It was tougher than expected, but Wisconsin left Camp Randall Stadium with a win on Friday night.

The Badgers took advantage of a special team gift and scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter of a 28-14 win over Western Michigan.

Senior quarterback Tyler Van Dyke completed 21 of 36 passes for 192 yards in his first start for the Badgers. Senior running back Tawee Walker had 66 yards in 15 carries and scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 6-yard run with 10 ½ minutes left in the fourth quarter.

And senior running back Chez Mellusi, playing his first game since his season-ending leg injury, carried the ball 19 times for 74 yards and scored on a 9-yard run in the first half.

The turning point for UW came on the first punt of the night. Sophomore Atticus Bertrams ripped a 50-yard kick that took a friendly bounce and landed on the back of unsuspecting Western Michigan senior Dashon Bissell.

Austin Brown grabbed the ball at the Broncos’ 20-yard line. Four plays in, Walker was in the end zone for the game-winning points.

Here are some key points from the game.

Tawee Walker can make the difficult meters

Those who followed Walker during spring ball and fall camp have seen what can happen when he puts his head down and works hard to make yards.

In one-on-one situations, things usually don’t end well for the defense.

That was the case on his 6-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. He ran over safety Tate Hallock at the 5 and then ran through cornerbacks Aaron Wofford and Bilhal Kone at the 1-yard line for the TD.

The two-point conversion gave the Badgers a 21-14 lead with 10:35 left in the game.

Badgers Bitten by Fake Field Goal Attempt

Western Michigan produced the best play of the night when kicker Parker Domschke ran 26 yards on a fake field goal attempt on the final play of the third quarter.

Domschke was poised to attempt a left-handed attempt from 47 yards, but instead of executing the kick, he turned around the back of the formation and threw the ball.

UW’s Jake Chaney rushed into position to contain the play, but Leon Lowery just missed a chance to make a shoestring tackle. Safety Preston Zachman knocked Domschke out of bounds at the 4.

The play led to a 1-yard touchdown run by Jalen Buckley. The extra point was good, giving Western Michigan a 14-13 lead with 14:15 left in the fourth quarter.

Chez Mellusi completes comeback

The Badgers didn’t score much in the first half despite controlling the ball and having almost twice as many yards as the Broncos (219-111).

What they did give fans was a taste of Mellusi, who suffered a leg injury last year at Purdue that kept him out for the rest of the season.

The senior came on for the second possession of the game and carried the ball eight times for 35 yards, an average of 4.4 yards, in the first half.

His 9-yard run on a second-and-9 play gave UW its first touchdown of the season. Give Melllusi credit for a nice cut back on the play when he started on the left but cut off center Jake Renfro to find a path to the end zone.

Tyler Van Dyke spreads the ball around

Van Dyke’s first time playing for the Badgers was marked by his willingness to pass the ball around.

In the first half, he split his 22 attempts among seven players, with Bryson Green getting a team-high six targets. Will Pauling, who often led the Badgers in that category last season, had six.

He finished the night by distributing 35 targets among eight players. Pauling led the team with eight targets, followed by Green.

Big play makes a big difference for Broncos

Western Michigan had just one explosive play in the first half, and it cost UW dearly. A 24-yard gain on a screen pass from Hayden Wolff to Jalen Buckley allowed the Broncos to move from their 39-yard line to the Badgers’ 37.

Two plays later, UW missed two tackles on a third-and-7 play and Western Michigan was able to convert on the first down.

Those were two chances that Wisconsin could have stopped a 16-play, 78-yard touchdown drive that lasted 8:40 and ended with Buckley scoring from 1 yard out with 3:02 left in the first half.