Favorite Games, No. 10: Hoosiers Finally Beat Wisconsin in Madison
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Now that the College World Series is in the books, the 2020-21 school year is finally complete. There's a lot to look forward to with a new season now less than two months away, but it's also a good time to look back at my 10 favorite games of the year.
And what a year it was. With the COVD-19 pandemic gripping the world and the Big Ten moving very cautiously – some say TOO cautiously – it was a college year unlike any other. From the fall through the winter and spring, games did get played, just not on time, in fewer numbers and for a few sports, in a different time of year.
Still, there were plenty of wonderful memories for many of our Indiana teams. There was a football season for the ages – spoiler alert, Tom Allen's team is going to dominate this list – and men's soccer run to the national championship game, some memorable basketball moments and a few walk-off winners.
All in all, it was a lot of fun.
So before we start bearing down on the 2021-22 season – which I'm already sure is going to have a ton of great memories too thanks to at least one critical coaching change – let's count down my 10 favorite games from last year.
So let's roll, starting at No. 10, Indiana football's 14-6 victory over Wisconsin up in chilly Madison on Dec. 5, 2020
Indiana defensive backs Tiawan Mullen (3) and Bryant Fitzgerald (31) break up the pass intended for Wisconsin's Kendric Pryor. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)
Why it mattered so much
Indiana had become the darlings of college football in 2020, working its way into the top-10 in the Associated Press poll for the first time in more than 30 years thanks to several impressive upset victories along the way.
The No. 11-ranked Hoosiers were 5-1 when they prepared to head off to Madison, a personal house of horrors and a massive one-sided rivalry with the No. 19 Badgers. The Hoosiers had lost 10 straight to the Badgers, by an average score of 51-15. The last time they played at Wisconsin, they lost 51-3 in 2013. The two previous trips were 59-7 and 83-20 beatdowns in this House of Horrors. They hadn't won their in 19 years.
Getting a win there seemed improbable, especially with quarterback Michael Penix Jr. out with an ACL injury suffered the previous Saturday against Maryland. It mean that Jack Tuttle would get his first college start.
Oddsmakers, relying on rivalry history and the current injury report, installed Wisconsin as a 14-point favorite.
And the Hoosiers, once again, couldn't have cared less.
Indiana defensive back Jamar Johnson (22) celebrates following an interception against Wisconsin. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)
How it played out
This time, it was the Hoosiers who did all the pushing around. Indiana's defense was terrific once again, keeping the Badgers out of the end zone all day, and allowing just two field goals in the dramatic 14-6 victory.
Indiana allowed 140 yards on the ground and 202 through the air, but were rock solid in the red zone. The Badgers had several long drives, but they ended in field goals or turnovers, a fumble once when Tiawan Mullen blew up Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz on a corner blitz, and an interception by Jamar Johnson.
Indiana's offense didn't do much, but they did enough. Tuttle, in his first start, threw for only 130 yards, but he found tight end Peyton Hendershot for a touchdown early in the second quarter and then iced the game with a 7-yard toss to Whop Philyor in the fourth quarter.
Kane Wommack's defense was terrific, which was a staple of the final half of the season. Outside of the Ohio State loss, the Indiana defense had allowed a TOTAL of only 17 points in its last three games, shutting out Michigan State, holding Maryland to 11 and Wisconsin to six points.
That's how impressive they were.
"They just do not blink, and that's why I am so proud of them,'' Indiana coach Tom Allen said. "This season, it hasn't been easy. Today was a tough, hard-fought win against a very good football team on the road. We haven't beaten Wisconsin in Madison in 19 years. So, we just keep checking off historical wins and opportunities for this program.
"Really, when you think about a football team, and we talked about it just in the locker room, I just kept saying that word over and over again, and that's what this is. A team. This is a really good football team."
The newly crowned hero
Even though this was Jack Tuttle's first career start, Allen and the Hoosiers had plenty of faith in him. He had been in the program for two years, and had patiently waited for a chance while sitting behind Penix and, the year previous, Peyton Ramsey as well.
He didn't load the stat sheet, but he made two great touchdown throws and got his first career win as a starter. That next-man-up mentality was certainly in play, as was LEO, of course.
“Indiana is tough, just plain and simple,” Tuttle said. “We’re a tough team. Every single guy on this team fights and will never stop fighting. That’s the message we sent today.”
Indiana quarterback Jack Tuttle (14) throws a pass to tight end Peyton Hendershot (86) against Wisconsin. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)
Big-picture meaning
The euphoria of this big win didn't last long, because when the Hoosiers got back from Madison on Sunday, several players tested positive for COVID-19. By the time the week was out, more than two dozen Hoosiers were knocked out by the virus.
It basically ended the season for the Hoosiers. They tried to play the Purdue game two weekends in a row, but the Boilers were having the same issues, and the game never got played. It was the first time there was no Old Oaken Bucket game in more than a century.
It also affected Indiana's bowl preparation, because they didn't have a full team to work with until just a few days before they played Ole Miss.
So that last win of a memorable season? That was at Wisconsin, a win for the ages.
