Wisconsin Football: Run Game will Need to Get Going v. Penn State
By Paul Bretl
The Wisconsin football program opens their 2021 season at home against Penn State. And naturally, all eyes are going to be on quarterback Graham Mertz.
For one, it’s quarterback play that can often determine the outcome of a football game, but also, Mertz came to Madison with massive expectations on his shoulders. We saw flashes last season of what he is capable of; now fans will want to see more consistency.
So while Mertz will draw much of the attention — and understandably so — what we should really be watching is the Badger run game and what kind of success they have on the ground.
Last season we saw the Wisconsin football team not find the usual success that they’ve often had on the ground.
Now, granted, it doesn’t help losing a player of Jonathan Taylor’s caliber, but this group still underperformed. According to ESPN, the 3.93 yards per rush that Wisconsin averaged ranked 62nd in the nation. For reference, the Badgers averaged 5.3 yards per carry in 2019 and 6.2 yards in 2018.
As I mentioned above, we saw what Mertz is capable of as a passer, but he’s still a young quarterback who is going to take his lumps. And that was on display at times in 2020 as he averaged 165 passing yards over the final six games with four touchdowns to five interceptions along with a completion rate of 56 percent.
Having a strong running game to lean on can open up things in the passing game, leading to easier reads and more big-play opportunities, among other things. This is true for any quarterback but can prove to be especially valuable for the inexperienced Mertz.
As Ben Kenney of Badgers Wire notes, it’s not a coincidence that in wins, Wisconsin averaged 205 rushing yards per game last season, but only 110 rushing yards in their losses. Being productive in the run game will be crucial to Wisconsin’s success against Penn State—as well as for the entirety of the season.
Transfer Chez Mellusi and sophomore Jalen Berger will be the Badgers top-2 backs. Mellusi had only 71 career attempts at Clemson but averaged 6.0 yards per carry, according to PFF ($$). Berger averaged 5.0 yards per rush as a true freshman on 60 carries over four games.
They’ll be running behind a Badger offensive line that is looking to rebound this year as well. Week 1, the starting five will be made up of Tyler Beach, Josh Seltzner, Joe Tippmann, Jack Nelson, and Logan Bruss.
It’s worth mentioning that Tippmann is a sophomore with just 11 career snaps, and Nelson is a freshman with only nine collegiate snaps. Certainly two players worth locking in on as this will be their most extensive playing time at the college level.
Across from the Badger offensive lineman will be the experienced PJ Mustipher, who finished 2020 with 35 tackles, two of which were for a loss. As a team, Penn State allowed just 3.7 yards per rush last season—this ranked 29th in all of college football.
I’ll also point out that the Penn State defense gave up just under 200 passing yards per game in 2020–ranking 24th in that category. Another reason that having a strong run game to lean on will be helpful.
However, just like Wisconsin will have some new faces on the offensive line, so will the Nittany Lions on the defensive front.
Both upfront units will be faced with a good test Week 1, and whichever group can find the most success could very well determine the outcome of Saturday’s game.
Now, with all of that said, don’t get me wrong, Mertz will have to also play well, but the Badger offensive line and run game can go a long ways in making life easier for him against this Penn State defense.