Instant Takeaways: Wisconsin's Offense is Reborn in Comfortable Win vs. Rutgers

The Badgers got back on track after a dismal defeat last weekend in Iowa City, manhandling Rutgers 31-10 in a cathartic, bounce-back victory at home.

It was a little dicey in the first half, as Wisconsin stalled out in the red zone twice and only took a 13-10 lead into the locker room after 30 minutes. But in the second half, it limited Rutgers to 109 total yard and scored on its first three drives before switching into clock-draining mode.

Wisconsin's first-half ineptitude wasn't necessarily due to widespread poor play/coaching. On offense, it was mostly isolated to the red zone, and on the defensive side of the ball, the Badgers didn't allow a drive of 30 yards outside of Rutgers two scoring drives that produced 10 points.

Here's what we learned, rapid-fire style, from Wisconsin's much-needed Week 10 victory:

Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Ryan Hopkins. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Stat of the game: Ryan Hopkins passing line (18-of-24, 241 yards and three touchdowns with a 200.6 quarterback rating). It was just one game, and it was just hapless Rutgers which waltzed into Camp Randall Stadium with the 123rd-ranked total defense. Nonetheless, Hopkins is clearly an upgrade at signal-caller. Across eight starts, Colton Joseph only threw for that many yards once, when he tossed for 362 yards against Eastern Michigan.

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Star of the game: We don't need to overthink this. This is going to be remembered as the Hopkins game, regardless of how the rest of his Wisconsin career plays out. I'm not sure how anybody, from the coaching staff to boosters to the fanbase, can watch that game and not come to the conclusion that the Badgers need to roll with Hopkins the rest of the way.

Quite honestly, I wasn't sure if Hopkins was going to be an upgrade at quarterback. He put together some solid tape against Iowa, and I completely understand why Wisconsin made the move, but I certainly didn't expect him to look this good, this quickly. I expected this game to be more of a slog as the true freshman got comfortable. And while that was the case in the first half, Hopkins and the Badgers pulled away, and he looked extremely comfortable in the process.

Defining play of the game: It has to be tight end Jacob Harris' 66-yard touchdown on 3rd-and-17. That play represented the game perfectly. It wasn't flawless; the Badgers were significantly behind the sticks on third-and-long. And yet, they found a way to get it done. Not only did they move the chains, they scored a spectacular touchdown. It was a far from perfect effort, but the results were just about as good as anyone could've hoped.

What it means: First thing's first — Wisconsin has its quarterback of the future. That is the inescapable takeaway from the win.

But it also means the Badgers have a great shot to finish the season strong. Even with three games against conference bottom-feeders in the month of November, I wasn't sure that we could simply pencil those in as Wisconsin wins after what we saw against Iowa. Now, the games against Maryland and Purdue look like games the Badgers should absolutely win handily. Sitting at 6-3 and with the Terps, Boilermakers and Gophers up next, Eight wins should be the minimum based on the first three quarters of the season. Nine is certainly feasible as well.

Don't overlook: Though defensive coordinator Mike Tressel's secondary had its lapses in coverage, the Badgers' defensive front looked like itself again. Wisconsin limited Rutgers to 2.6 yards per carry, and notched eight tackles-for-loss and five sacks. The Badgers were once again the stronger, more physical team, and that's extremely important for their identity.

What's next: Wisconsin hits the road once again to take on another Big Ten bottom-feeder. In Week 11, the Badgers head out east to College Park, Maryland to play the Terps and interim head coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim. Kickoff is set for 11:00 A.M. CT on FS1.

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