Wisconsin’s Corey Clement ran 5 yards for a touchdown.
Advertisement
After being out-gained by Wisconsin, 180-64, in the first half, LSU (0-1) found some momentum in the second half with 257 total offensive yards. Despite Fournette’s 176 yards from scrimmage, LSU’s offense was shut down time and time again as it bogged down when asking Harris to usher the ball to one of his two National Football League receivers.
LSU head coach Les Miles watches during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Wisconsin Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016, in Green Bay, Wis.
The LSU Tigers and Wisconsin Badgers met up in the first ever college football game at Lambeau Field.
LSU quickly drove to the Wisconsin 30-yard line, but Harris was intercepted by Badgers safety D’Cota Dixon with 57 seconds remaining after narrowly escaping heavy pressure from Vince Biegel.
The loss is a huge blow for an LSU team that was hyped up all summer. By halftime, they had run twice as many plays and gained almost three times as many yards. Running back Leonard Fournette, a Heisman front-runner and coming off the best rushing season the SEC has seen, rushed for 138 yards on 23 carries but was held out of the endzone and had a tough time getting anything going until the third quarter. After the game LSU coach Les Miles said he didn’t realize Dixon had been down before the hit, and that, “He’s not a malicious guy”.
Miles said the senior guard told him afterward he thought the play was still live.
LSU’s offensive line, which started two new tackles, had some issues that started before Boutte’s hit. “I just can’t imagine that he saw him go down and then made it back”. Harris opened the drive up with a 19-yard pass to the tight end across the middle, followed by a couple short passes to Travin Dural and Malachi Dupre to get them to midfield. And when Badgers running back Corey Clement scored a 5-yard third-quarter touchdown, Wisconsin held a 13-0 lead and appeared on its way to a convincing win. However, quarterback Brandon Harris was intercepted at the Badgers 25. Wisconsin turned Fournette’s missed fourth down into a field goal and 6-0 lead.
Bart Houston – making his first career start – stared down a receiver and allowed Tre’Davious White to jump the route and return it 21 yards for a score.
But in the end, the Badgers celebrated at Lambeau Field, home of the NFL’s Green Bay Packers.
“When you look at the ranking, OK, they’re No. 5”. But what are we? “But I know what we’ve got as a team”, Clement said. “(We) did a very good job of just keeping focus on what was supposed to be done, and that was to get the victory”.
LSU: FCS school Jacksonville State visits Tiger Stadium for LSU’s home opener on September 10.
Advertisement
Then Wisconsin plays Iowa on the road, Nebraska in a night game at home and Northwestern in Evanston, Illinois.
