University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Fall Welcome Back 2014
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Badger mistakes lead to LSU comeback By Zach Rastall THE DAILY CARDINAL
HOUSTON—When sophomore running back Corey Clement scored a two-yard touchdown early in the third quarter to put Wisconsin up 24-7, it seemed as if the Badgers were well on their way to picking up a monumental win for not only their football program, but for the Big Ten as a whole. But a fake punt by LSU and an injury to UW redshirt senior nose guard Warren Herring changed everything, as the Tigers (1-0) flipped the script in the second half to erase the 17-point deficit and defeat Wisconsin (0-1) 28-24 in the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff at NRG Stadium. The Badgers came flying out of the gates to start the game, taking a 7-0 lead with 9:05 left in the first quarter on a 45-yard jet sweep touchdown run by sophomore wide receiver Reggie Love. They extended that lead to 10-0 under
four minutes later when freshman kicker Rafael Gaglianone drilled a 51-yard field goal. LSU answered back immediately on an 80-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Anthony Jennings to sophomore wide receiver Travin Dural, which came just 20 seconds after Gaglianone’s field goal. A 14-yard touchdown run by redshirt junior Melvin Gordon midway through the second quarter gave Wisconsin a 17-7 advantage at halftime, and the Badgers picked up right where they left off to start the second half. Gordon ran for 63 yards on UW’s first play of the third quarter, helping set up Clement’s touchdown run. However, that drive turned out to be the end of Wisconsin’s success on offense. On the ensuing LSU possession, head coach Les Miles, who is well known for his risk-taking tendencies, called a fake punt
with his team facing 4th and four at their own 43-yard line. The gamble paid off, and the Tigers ended up getting field goals on back-to-back possessions. But the real turning point for the Badgers came near the end of the third quarter, when Herring went down with a knee injury. With Herring and redshirt senior defensive end Konrad Zagzebski, who was carted off the field in the first quarter with a neck injury, both out of the game, the UW front seven suddenly was unable to stop LSU’s rushing attack after stifling it throughout the first half. The Tigers scored two fourthquarter touchdowns, including a 28-yard touchdown run by senior running back Kenny Hilliard with 9:41 remaining to give them the lead for the first time in the game. Though the injuries to Herring and Zagzebski certainly hurt, Wisconsin head coach Gary Andersen wasn’t ready to use it as an excuse for his team’s collapse.
“I guess we could use that as a crutch if we wanted to, but we’ve got enough kids to go out and play,” Andersen said. “It was very tough to lose Warren and Zags; they’re leaders, they’re great football players and I hope we get them back soon.” The go-ahead touchdown was set up when UW redshirt junior quarterback Tanner McEvoy threw his first of two fourthquarter interceptions. McEvoy had a disastrous outing in his first start as the Badgers’ quarterback, completing just 8 of 24 passes for 50 yards. “This was his first start, his first big game against an SEC opponent,” Clement said. “I believe he stuck it out very strongly, and he’ll have better moments in our next games.” But perhaps the most frustrating part of Wisconsin’s struggles for Badgers fans was the notable absence of Gordon for much of the second half. Gordon ran for
146 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries during the game, but only got three more touches after his 63-yard run on UW’s first drive of the third quarter. Though many speculated that Gordon may have suffered an injury early in the second half, Andersen shot down that rumor in their postgame interviews, even saying he “didn’t know” why Gordon only had four rushes in the second half. “Coaches’ choice, Melvin was perfectly fine,” Clement said. “I can’t really say anything about that. Melvin has his time and I have my time, and I just tried to make the most out of my opportunities.” The second-half collapse was both frustrating and extremely disappointing for Wisconsin, who appeared to be on the verge of picking up one of the biggest nonconference wins in school history.
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ASM serves to protect student rights, encourages advocacy By Emily Gerber THE DAILY CARDINAL
As a college student and budding adult, one can be easily overlooked. In the University of Wisconsin System, however, ignoring the rights of a student is against the law. “Wisconsin is a unique institution in which students have the
right to be at the table in conversations that impact student life, interests and services,” University of Wisconsin-Madison senior David Gardner said. Gardner served as chair of the 2013-’14 session of Associated Students of Madison, the governing body of UW-Madison that is respon-
sible for representing students’ interests in university and system-wide decisions. The existence of ASM and overall student rights in UW System decision-making is outlined in Wisconsin’s statutes, which mandate that students are entitled to a say in matters concerning their own education path
and relevant policy changes. But Gardner said state law is not always enough to ensure the presence of a student voice on issues impacting students. In Spring 2014, on the tail of student approval for the Recreational Sports Master Plan, conversations with university leaders took place to decide a change to the plan
that could have impacted student access to one of campus’s larger facilities, the SHELL. Instead of Recreational Sports turning over the facility to University Athletics’ control for renovation in 2021, proposals were made to shift owner-
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“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”