2002 Wisconsin Badgers football team

The 2002 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin in the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season.

2002 Wisconsin Badgers football
Alamo Bowl champion
Alamo Bowl, W 31–28 OT vs. Colorado
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record8–6 (2–6 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBrian White (4th as OC; 8th overall season)
Defensive coordinatorKevin Cosgrove (8th as DC; 13th overall season)
Base defense4–3
MVPJim Leonhard
CaptainBrooks Bollinger
Lee Evans
Al Johnson
Home stadiumCamp Randall Stadium
(Capacity: 76,634,[1] Astroturf)
Seasons
← 2001
2003 →
2002 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 1 Ohio State $#+   8 0     14 0  
No. 8 Iowa %+   8 0     11 2  
No. 9 Michigan   6 2     10 3  
No. 16 Penn State   5 3     9 4  
Purdue   4 4     7 6  
Illinois   4 4     5 7  
Minnesota   3 5     8 5  
Wisconsin   2 6     8 6  
Michigan State   2 6     4 8  
Northwestern   1 7     3 9  
Indiana   1 7     3 9  
  • # – BCS National Champion
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll[2]

Schedule edit

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 237:00 p.m.Fresno State*No. 25
ESPNW 23–2175,136[4]
August 316:45 p.m.at UNLV*ESPN2W 27–742,075[4]
September 711:00 a.m.West Virginia*No. 25
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ESPN+W 34–1776,320[4]
September 1411:00 a.m.Northern Illinois*No. 22
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ESPN+W 24–2177,460[4]
September 2111:00 a.m.Arizona*No. 22
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ESPN2W 31–1078,582[4]
October 52:30 p.m.No. 20 Penn StateNo. 19
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ABCL 31–3479,403[4]
October 1211:00 p.m.at IndianaNo. 23ESPN+L 29–3231,156[4]
October 192:30 p.m.No. 4 Ohio State 
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ABCL 14–1979,729[4]
October 266:00 p.m.at Michigan StateESPN2W 42–2474,507[4]
November 211:00 a.m.at No. 9 IowaESPNL 3–2070,397[4]
November 911:00 a.m.Illinois
  • Camp Randall Stadium
  • Madison, WI
ESPN+L 20–3778,709[4]
November 1611:00 a.m.at No. 12 MichiganESPN2L 14–21110,412[4]
November 2311:00 a.m.Minnesota
ESPNW 49–3178,843[4]
December 287:00 p.m.vs. No. 14 Colorado*ESPNW 31–28 OT50,690[4]
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

Rankings edit

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516Final
AP25RV252222211923RV
Coaches Poll2325211817161522RV
BCSNot releasedNot released

Season summary edit

Coming off a disappointing 5–7 2001 season, the Badgers of 2002 wanted improvement. Despite amazing statistics from WR Lee Evans and RB Anthony Davis, the Badgers had issues closing out games, and an overworked defense managed lackluster efforts when the team could hardly afford them.

In the spring game, Wisconsin's offense suffered a devastating blow when top receiver Lee Evans was lost for the season with a torn ACL. Evan's loss was a significant blow, but despite it, Wisconsin managed to start off the season by winning all five of their nonconference games. From there, though, things did not go Wisconsin's way; the Badgers lost their first three Big Ten games by less than 7 points. Among those was a near-upset of eventual National Champion Ohio State, a 19–14 Ohio State win that was Jim Tressel's first over the Badgers (having lost 20–17 to Wisconsin the previous year). After going 0–3 to open their Big Ten slate, Wisconsin defeated Michigan State in Spartan Stadium 42–24 for their first conference win of the season. After that game, Wisconsin would lose their next 3 games against Big Ten opponents, including a 20–3 loss to Big Ten co-champion Iowa, and yet another close game against a Lloyd Carr-coached Michigan team. The loss to Michigan dropped Wisconsin to 1–6 in Big Ten play.

To close out the regular season, Wisconsin finally put together a complete game in a 49–31 blowout of rival Minnesota, taking back Paul Bunyan's Axe and keeping Minnesota's losing streak in Camp Randall alive. The Badgers improved to 7–6 on the season.

Wisconsin was awarded a berth in the Alamo Bowl, having gotten the required 6 wins in the regular season, and faced Colorado, a Big Twelve opponent that had won the Big Twelve North outright and lost the Big Twelve Championship Game 29–7 to Oklahoma. At 9-4, Colorado entered the game ranked 14th in the nation, and hoping for a ten-win season. But Wisconsin managed to keep up with Colorado, and won the game 31–28 in overtime for their 8th win of the season, knocking Colorado to 9–5 on the year.

For Wisconsin, Freshman WR Jonathan Orr put together a good season in the absence of Lee Evans, catching 47 passes for 842 yards, with 8 receiving touchdowns. RB Anthony Davis ran for 1,555 yards on 300 carries, with 13 touchdowns.[5] QB Brooks Bollinger, in his senior season, completed 131 passes on 245 attempts for 1,758 yards and 14 touchdowns, with just 4 interceptions.[5]

Roster edit

2002 Wisconsin Badgers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
G 58 Kalvin Barrett   So
TE 88 Mark Bell   Jr
FB 45 Matt Bernstein   Fr
FB 39 Erik Bickerstaff Sr
QB 5 Brooks Bollinger (C)   Sr
WR 84 David Braun   Sr
WR 1 Byron Brown   Jr
G 67 Dan Buenning   So
WR 87 Darrin Charles So
G 50 Jonathan Clinkscale   So
QB 11 Owen Daniels   Fr
RB 28 Anthony Davis   So
OT 75 Morgan Davis   So
TE 81 Bob Docherty So
WR 3 Lee Evans   (C) Sr
C 72 Al Johnson (C)   Sr
OT 64 Ben Johnson   Sr
OT 56 Jason Jowers   Sr
OL 79 Mike Kleber   Fr
FB 37 Russ Kuhns   Sr
OT 61 Mike Lorenz   So
TE 36 Matt Mialik   Jr
TE 38 Jason Pociask So
WR 9 Jonathan Orr   Fr
TE 85 Tony Paciotti   So
RB 20 Jerrone Pettus   So
TE 38 Jason Pociask   Fr
C, G 53 Donovan Raiola   Fr
QB 16 Matt Schabert   So
RB 30 Dwayne Smith Fr
QB 19 Jim Sorgi   Jr
TE 82 Rob Tucker   Jr
G 66 Andy Ulrich   So
RB 24 LaMarr Watkins Fr
WR 6 Brandon White Fr
WR 25 Brandon Williams Fr
OT 78 Jake Wood   Fr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
S 7 Ryan Aiello Jr
CB 6 Brett Bell So
S 42 Robert Brooks So
LB 10 Chris Catalano   So
DT 97 Nick Cochart   Jr
CB 4 Chuckie Cowans   So
S 24 Patrick Ellestad   So
LB 4 Elliot Goode Fr
DT 77 Anttaj Hawthorne So
S 22 Nate Howard   Jr
DE 90 Erasmus James Jr
DT 74 Jason Jefferson   So
DE 98 Darius Jones   So
S 18 Jim Leonhard So
LB 12 Alex Lewis Jr
DE 91 Traison Lewis   So
LB 46 Jeff Mack   Jr
LB 30 Kyle McCorison   Jr
CB 21 Levonne Rowan Fr
S 14 Dontez Sanders   Fr
DB 15 Ryan Simmons   Sr
DE 99 Jake Sprague   Sr
CB 2 Scott Starks So
LB 34 Kareem Timbers   So
CB 23 B. J. Tucker Sr
DE 92 Jonathan Welsh   So
LB 27 Broderick Williams   Jr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K 97 Matt Allen So
K 16 Scott Campbell Jr
LS 86 Matt Katula   So
P 19 R. J. Morse So
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Brian White – Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs
  • Kevin Cosgrove – Defensive Coordinator/Inside Linebackers
  • Paul ChrystTight Ends
  • Ron CooperDefensive Backs
  • Jeff HortonQuarterbacks
  • Jim Hueber – Offensive Line and Run Game Coordinator
  • Henry Mason – Wide Receivers
  • Brian Murphy – Outside Linebackers/Special Teams
  • John PalermoAssistant Head Coach/Defensive Line

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

Roster

Game summaries edit

Fresno State edit

Fresno State vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Bulldogs 7 0 7721
No. 25 Badgers 0 10 7623

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: August 23, 2002
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 72 °F (22 °C); Cloudy; Wind at N 6 MPH
  • Game attendance: 75,136
  • Referee: J. Strochertz
  • TV: ESPN
  • [1]
Game information

UNLV edit

Wisconsin vs UNLV – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Badgers 0 24 0327
Rebels 0 7 007

at Sam Boyd Stadium

  • Date: August 31, 2002
  • Game time: 6:45 p.m.
  • Game weather: 97 °F (36 °C); Cloudy; Wind at SW 11 MPH
  • Game attendance: 42,075
  • Referee: Clair Gausman
  • TV: ESPN2
  • [2]
Game information

West Virginia edit

West Virginia vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Mountaineers 0 3 7717
No. 25 Badgers 7 27 0034

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: September 7, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 76 °F (24 °C); Clear; Wind at SW 7 MPH
  • Game attendance: 76,320
  • Referee: Gene Steratore
  • TV: ESPN+
  • [3]
Game information

Northern Illinois edit

Northern Illinois vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Huskies 3 3 31221
No. 22 Badgers 0 10 7724

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: September 14, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 72 °F (22 °C); Cloudy; Wind at Var. 5 MPH
  • Game attendance: 77,460
  • Referee: S. Pamon
  • TV: ESPN+
  • [4]
Game information

Arizona edit

Arizona vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Wildcats 0 0 7310
No. 22 Badgers 0 24 7031

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: September 21, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 63 °F (17 °C); Sunny and Clear; Wind at NW 5-7 MPH
  • Game attendance: 78,582
  • Referee: D. Witvoet
  • TV: ESPN2
  • [5]
Game information

#20 Penn State edit

Penn State vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 20 Nittany Lions 10 11 7634
No. 19 Badgers 0 14 61131

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: October 5, 2002
  • Game time: 2:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: 55 °F (13 °C); Clear; Wind at W 6 MPH
  • Game attendance: 79,403
  • Referee: J. Lapetoma
  • TV: ABC
  • [6]
Game information

Indiana edit

Wisconsin vs Indiana – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 23 Badgers 6 10 13029
Hoosiers 3 7 71532

at Memorial Stadium

  • Date: October 12, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C); Cloudy; Wind at N/A
  • Game attendance: 31,156
  • Referee: Steve Newman
  • TV: ESPN+
  • [7]
Game information

#4 Ohio State edit

Ohio State vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 4 Buckeyes 10 3 0619
Badgers 7 7 0014

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: October 19, 2002
  • Game time: 2:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: 42 °F (6 °C); Cloudy; Wind at NE 10
  • Game attendance: 79,729
  • Referee: D. Honig
  • TV: ABC
  • [8]
Game information

Michigan State edit

Wisconsin vs Michigan State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Badgers 21 7 7742
Spartans 0 3 14724

at Spartan Stadium

  • Date: October 26, 2002
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 44 °F (7 °C); Mostly Cloudy; Wind at W 5
  • Game attendance: 74,507
  • Referee: Dennis Lipski
  • TV: ESPN2
  • [9]
Game information

#9 Iowa edit

Wisconsin vs Iowa – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Badgers 0 3 003
No. 9 Hawkeyes 0 10 10020

at Kinnick Stadium

  • Date: November 2, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 37 °F (3 °C); Mostly Sunny; Wind at W 10
  • Game attendance: 70,397
  • Referee: S. Pamon
  • TV: ESPN
  • [10]
Game information

Illinois edit

Illinois vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Fighting Illini 10 14 31037
Badgers 3 10 7020

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: November 9, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 37 °F (3 °C); Mostly Sunny; Wind at W 10
  • Game attendance: 78,709
  • Referee: S. Pamon
  • TV: ESPN+
  • [11]
Game information

#12 Michigan edit

Wisconsin vs Michigan – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Badgers 7 7 0014
No. 12 Wolverines 14 0 7021

at Michigan Stadium

  • Date: November 16, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 35 °F (2 °C); Mostly cloudy; Wind at ENE 15
  • Game attendance: 110,412
  • Referee: S. Newman
  • TV: ESPN
  • [12]
Game information

Minnesota edit

Minnesota vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Golden Gophers 3 11 10731
Badgers 7 14 72149

at Camp Randall Stadium

  • Date: November 23, 2002
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 39 °F (4 °C); Partly cloudy; Wind at W 8
  • Game attendance: 78,843
  • Referee: D. Honig
  • TV: ESPN
  • [13]
Game information

#14 Colorado edit

Colorado vs Wisconsin – Game summary
Period 1 2 34OTTotal
No. 14 Buffaloes 14 0 140028
Badgers 7 14 07331

at Alamodome

  • Date: December 28, 2002
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: Indoors
  • Game attendance: 50,690
  • Referee: Terry Brown
  • TV: ESPN
  • [14]
Game information

Regular starters edit

Team players selected in the 2003 NFL Draft edit

Player Position Round Overall Selection NFL Team
Al Johnson Center 2 38 Dallas Cowboys
B.J. Tucker Cornerback 6 178 Dallas Cowboys
Brooks Bollinger Quarterback 6 200 New York Jets
Ben Johnson Offensive Tackle 7 216 Detroit Lions

[6]

References edit

  1. ^ "Wisconsin Badgers 2002 Football Schedule".
  2. ^ "2002 NCAA Football Rankings - AP Top 25 Postseason (Jan. 5)". ESPN. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  3. ^ Stapleton, Arnie (August 24, 2002). "Late FG Lifts Wisconsin". The Beaufort Gazette. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 24, 2013. Retrieved October 12, 2011.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "The Automated ScoreBook For Football" (PDF). University of Wisconsin Department of Athletics. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 12, 2012. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  5. ^ a b "UWBADGERS.COM - The Official Web Site of The Wisconsin Badgers Athletics - Football". Archived from the original on June 22, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
  6. ^ "2003 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.