Rohrer's Reaction: Badgers Fail to Dominate Western Illinois, But Don't Write Them Off Yet

Point blank: Saturday night wasn't the performance anyone wanted. Fans, players, coaches, no one affiliated with the Badgers walked away from Wisconsin's Week 2 win over Western Illinois completely satisfied with what they saw.

And yet, the Badgers still beat the Leathernecks by 27 points.

Wisconsin didn't pass the eye test for a lot of people Saturday night. That's fair; it certainly has plenty to clean up.

But if you think the season is over based on what you watched Saturday night, you're either truly irreversibly scarred by the horrors of the Luke Fickell era, or you refuse to take the good with the bad and acknowledge that it's a long season during which a lot can change.

Either way, you probably have a point. But if you actively choose to be miserable, that's on you. Here's a handful of reactions from Wisconsin's Week 2 win over Western Illinois:

Give Colton Joseph a chance

Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Colton Joseph. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

I immediately got my initial thoughts on Joseph's performance written down after the win, because I knew it would be at the top of Badgers' fans minds. Once again, I'll be extremely blunt: it wasn't good enough, and you'd like the quarterback to look better as a passer two games into the season. Nonetheless, it's not time to panic about Joseph.

It's definitely concerning that Joseph's accuracy looked worse in game two than it did in his Wisconsin debut. The first half, especially, featured some ugly misses. But two things can be true at once: Joseph has to tighten up his accuracy, but he's still playing significantly better than any quarterback Wisconsin deployed last fall.

The reason I'm not ready to write Joseph off is because the ball is going to the right places. His eyes are in the right spot. It's not a mental issue, which is good because those tend to be a lot harder to fix. If anything, it's a mechanics thing, it's about settling in and not rushing throws.

I'll have a more concrete answer once I get my hands of the film, but remember some of the throws Joseph made against Notre Dame? That arm talent is still there, and again, his accuracy was much better in that game. Fickell also said he was playing a little hurt in Week 2. With Joseph, we can acknowledge there's room for improvement while not irrationally demanding he be benched for a true freshman.

Wisconsin still isn't great at man defense

Eric Fletcher Jr saw 25 snaps in Week 2, but he struggled in man coverage. On the Leathernecks' third drive, receiver Jacob Kania beat him twice for two big gains, making a nice contested catch on his head and then taking advantage of a poor angle by Fletcher as he tried to undercut an out route.

Jai'mier Scott also allowed a 45-yard catch by Kania on Western Illinois' first drive of the second half. Aside from a few big plays — which you're more susceptible to in man coverage — the Badgers' pass defense was actually fine. The Leathernecks only tossed for 148 total yards and again, more than half came on those three aforementioned plays.

Fletcher simply isn't great in man coverage dating back to his Oklahoma State tape. Scott getting beat by Kania is a little more alarming, but again, that happens from time to time in man coverage. It was still good to see the Badgers ease off the zone that got shredded by CJ Carr last week. While Fletcher and Scott, in particular, have things to clean up, Wisconsin shouldn't abandon its man-to-man defense.

Run defense isn't a concern yet

Wisconsin Badgers linebacker Tyreese Fearbry. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Western Illinois ran for 154 yards, which on paper, doesn't reflect too well on Wisconsin. But context is needed. 88 of those yards came from a its mobile quarterback Kennedy McGill, who had 18 carries and constantly looked to tuck the ball and run. We can criticize the Badgers for not containing a mobile quarterback proficiently enough, but don't mistake that for poor run defense; the leathernecks' backs gained 49 total yards on 12 carries.

Abu Sama needs to get north and south

This is a minor complaint, and it's hard to criticize a guy who took the game's first handoff 72 yards to the house, looking like he was playing in his backyard while doing so. But too often, Sama looks to bounce a run to the outside looking for the big play when he should take the four, five, six yards that are available up the middle.

When you pound a defense into submission with runs like that, the big plays will come. Darrion Dupree and Bryan Jackson, meanwhile, look like very decisive downhill runners. Sama needs to follow his blocks and let the big plays come to him.

Add us as a preferred source on Google