Jim Polzin grades Wisconsin football in win vs. Rutgers

Bad snaps by center Tanor Bortolini wrecked the timing on a handful of plays, including a third-and-1 in the first quarter in which Braelon Allen was dropped for a loss of 1. Tanner Mordecai saved a couple with quick reactions, and the quarterback once again did a good job of making plays with his feet. He needs to be more efficient as a passer than he was Saturday if the Badgers are going to beat Iowa next week, but Mordecai didn’t make any costly mistakes through the air. Allen and tight end Hayden Rucci lost fumbles, and that needs to be cleaned up. Meanwhile, Jackson Acker was impressive in his first game as Allen’s primary backup, finishing with 13 carries for 65 yards.

Wisconsin won the line of scrimmage and limited what had been a dominant Rutgers running game to 64 yards. That forced the Scarlet Knights to put the ball in the air 38 times, and Gavin Wimsatt’s inaccuracy was on display over and over. Ricardo Hallman was on the receiving end of one of those misfires, and the Badgers cornerback returned the interception 95 yards for a touchdown that gave Wisconsin a 17-0 lead at the half instead of heading into the locker room leading by one score. All in all, a much-improved performance by Mike Tressel and Co. But Rutgers’ numbers coming into this game were bloated by weak competition, so it’s too early to say if the Wisconsin defense has turned the corner.

Poll: How would you grade Wisconsin football’s performance vs. Rutgers

A quiet day for this group. Nathanial Vakos finally missed a field goal, albeit from 53 yards. Jack Van Dyke sent a kickoff out of bounds for the fourth time in five games. Chimere Dike’s decision making on punt returns continues to be impressive.

Luke Fickell called this a complete performance, but I beg to differ. It’s a solid win to start an important month, no question about that. And maybe we should expect some rust coming out of the bye week. But the Badgers still haven’t had a game in which all three phases play well. Maybe they’re saving that for Ohio State at the end of October, but there’s plenty to clean up if Wisconsin is going to avoid a letdown before that big game.