UW football: A position-by-position spring game evaluation (with photos)
The University of Wisconsin football team finally caught a few breaks this spring.
For starters, the rain stayed away Saturday afternoon at Camp Randall Stadium.
More importantly, the Badgers finished an injury-filled spring by staying relatively healthy during the annual intrasquad scrimmage. Sophomore tailback Zach Brown sustained a shin injury, but UW coach Bret Bielema said X-rays were negative and it was only bruised.
Bielema also announced that senior Matt Shaughnessy should be back in time for the start of preseason training camp in August. Shaughnessy broke the fibula bone in his right leg on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, the Cardinal (mostly first-teamers) beat the White 28-3 in a relatively clean game. Here's a position-by-position look at who stood out Saturday:
QUARTERBACKS
Each of the five quarterbacks had their moments, but the starting job appears to be Allan Evridge's to lose.
The senior was 7-of-12 for 137 yards, including a 40-yarder to tight end Lance Kendricks on the opening possession of the game. The pass he'd like to have back is the one that ended up in the hands of safety Chris Maragos, who made a nice play on a toss intended for David Gilreath.
Dustin Sherer was 5-of-8 for 68 yards. Those numbers would have been better, but sophomore Isaac Anderson dropped what would have been a 15-yard touchdown pass.
Scott Tolzien was 4-of-8 for 61 yards and two interceptions; James Stallons was 2-of-5 for 29 yards and a touchdown; Curt Phillips was 1-of-5 for 12 yards.
RUNNING BACKS
Again, everybody played pretty well here. Freshman John Clay made his long-awaited debut and didn't disappoint, finishing with a combined 94 yards on 21 carries while playing for both the Cardinal and White squads. Clay carried the ball 11 times for 67 yards on one of the White's opening possession of the third quarter.
"They told me the other day, that make sure I get a good night sleep," Clay said of the coaching staff's hint that he'd get a heavy workload Saturday. "So I kind of figured I was going to be running the ball a lot."
Said Bielema: "I thought he got better as the game went on, and that's what we're trying to get out of him."
P.J. Hill had 33 yards on seven carries in limited action. Lance Smith also had a heavy workload, with 98 yards on 17 carries while seeing time with both squads.
WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
Gilreath, a sophomore, had three catches for 79 yards and may be the Badgers' best receiver right now.
Anderson may have had a better spring than any of the wide receivers except Gilreath, but Anderson ended it on a sour note when he dropped a pass from Sherer in the end zone. Kendricks had two catches for 60 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown from Stallons.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Bielema singled out the three seniors -- left guard Andy Kemp, right guard Kraig Urbik and right tackle Eric Vanden Heuvel -- and junior center John Moffitt, who made huge strides this spring after making the switch from left guard.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Freshman Louis Nzegwu got the start in place of Shaughnessy and had four tackles for loss.
Bielema mentioned several times this spring how, if there was a silver lining to all the injuries, it's that a lot of young players got more reps than they normally would have.
Nzwegwu appears to be one of those younger players who took a significant step, although he needs a big summer in the weight room. Nzegwu, who's at 231 right now, says he wants to be somewhere between 240-245 when fall camp starts.
LINEBACKERS
DeAndre Levy didn't have a particularly big game Saturday, but he made huge strides this spring in terms of leadership. Always sort of a quiet guy, Levy said earlier this week that he's made an effort to be more of a vocal leader heading into his senior season.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Maragos and Jay Valai both made beautiful interceptions. Valai made a mid-air adjustment on a tipped pass and stretched out to make the pick. Niles Brinkley also had a pick on a pass from Tolzien that was intended for Maurice Moore.
SPECIALISTS
Not a very good day for this group. Bielema said earlier this week that Phillip Welch was in the lead at kicker, but neither he nor Matt Fischer performed well on Saturday.
Including normal field goal situations and rapid-fire competitions at the end of the first and third quarters, Welch was 6-of-10, with misses from 25, 31 and 37 (twice). Fischer was 5-of-10, with misses from 31 (twice), 35, 37 and 45. Brad DeBauche averaged 35.4 yards on five punts.
Michelle Stocker
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Running back John Clay, getting his first live action at Wisconsin, rushed for 94 yards on 21 carries in the spring game Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium.
