Turning on film of the #Badgers' loss to Indiana yesterday.

Starts after UW's first drive b/c of the MSU--OSU game running late...Here's a thread of what sticks out/what we can take away moving forward:

(1/x)

UW 2nd drive:
-Mertz rolls left but Dietzen gets beat inside
-Had Dike and Pryor crossing (Dike deep, Pryor short) but threw between them
-Pressure was getting home, but Mertz still had time to plant and deliver an accurate pass

Miss #1 by the QB

Lyles goes down on the following play (a 7yd run by Garrett Groshek).

Insert Tanor Bortolini

The following 3rd-and-3:
-Protection holds
-Pass to Ferguson is a bit high but a play could've been made
-Kendric Pryor was running free 14yds deep (in Mertz's eyeline)
-Mertz locked on Ferguson

Missed opportunity #2 by the QB

Following drive: UW defensive front is impenetrable, IU's WRs start to win their matchups.
-Tuttle making great RPO reads
-Sanborn big-time TFL
-Field position flipped

UW 3rd drive:
-1and10: 11 personnel, Mertz has nowhere to go with the football & scrambles for a sack
-Bortolini doing a great job in pass pro
-Berger with 14yds on 2 carries, taken out of the game
-1and10 on the +39 Mertz fumble

The fumble:
-Looks like Groshek went into pass pro on the wrong side or RT missed the assignment...Left side was matched up, right side had the free rusher

Still, Mullen came from the strong side...Mertz could've tossed him a glance before locking on to Dike who ran open

To me it looks more and more like Groshek missed the assignment on the blitzing Mullen. The sack was inevitable at that point but aware ness and ball security are still key

Ensuing drive:
-IU gets the ground game going & converts in the red zone for a TD (that'll happen when you turn the ball over)
-the RZ numbers were key, as IU cashed 2/2 for TDs and UW was 0/3 (2FGs)

The touchdown:
-Burrell bit hard on PA, eyes caught in the backfield: easy TD

A HURDLE ATTEMPT BY BARRY ALVAREZ'S GRANDSON

(Also: Bortolini/the offensive line scheming help for him were working really, really well)

NOTE: there was 9:02 left in the second quarter when they mentioned the Ferguson--Alvarez bloodline

UW drive post-IU TD:
-IU LB Micah McFadden had a freaking day
-Jake Ferguson was pretty much the team's entire offense
-Mertz continued to miss small-window throws (even with good protection and enough separation by the wide receivers)

Berger's breakaway run could've been a touchdown if Dike (13) got aggressive down the field.

Instead set up a red zone trip that stalled and turned int oa FG attempt

Correction: would have definitely been a touchdown.
-Great blocking up front
-Perfect 2nd-level seal by Van Lanen
-Dike doesn't attack the safety and allows him to make a TD-saving tackle

And, as I've written about, right after that Berger run the Badgers hand off to Mason Stokke and Garrett Groshek for a total of 3 yards.

Then on 3rd down Mertz locked into Pryor in double coverage and the play wasn't there to be made.

So far: Extremely rocky start for the QB

First half recap:
-Defense was masterful
-Mertz was off in many areas
-2 missed blocking assignments killed the #Badgers (fumble, Berger run)
-Special teams penalties

Indiana TD drive to start the second half:
-Deep drops giving Tuttle time, he's making really good throws
-Sanborn roughing the passer was costly
-Fryfogle is a freaking beast
-Indiana cashes a red zone touchdown (2/2 RZ TDs, UW went 0/3 with 2 FGs)

IU Touchdown:
-Deep drops really starting helping Tuttle find time and deliver throws
-Beautiful throw to the back corner. He was the one quarterback in the game until that point that was making plays

More from that play:
-Scott Nelson on Philyor 1v1 is a tough matchup (and one I didn't expect to be called)
-All-out-pressure was perfectly blocked by IU
-I still don't know why Scott Nelson was on an island with Whop Philyor

So now you're down 14-3 in the third quarter and Indiana has all the momentum...What's the one thing that you can't do under any circumstances?

Turn the ball over.

It was on this drive that Mertz really found his rhythm:
-1and10, 12 personnel, finds Pryor on the run (same crosser concept as Mertz's miss in Q1, but this one had him roll to the right)
-1and10, 12 personnel: big run for Berger (great blocking by Ferguson)

Then, for some reason unbeknownst to me, on a 2nd-and-10 with 11 personnel, Rudolph called a bubble screen to Jack Dunn with Dike set as the only blocker.

Surprise, surprise...the play lost 3 yards

Mertz's INT:
-Great protection, sees Dike finding a hole in the zone past the sticks
-Dike didn't turn to the ball until it was too late (lacking the awareness of where he was breaking to)
-The throw, though, was a second late

This was equally on Dike and Mertz

When you slow it down it's clear Dike turned too late in his break and actually was turning as he left the open hole in the zone.

But Mertz delivered a second too late and it proved costly

I'm going to add Chimere Dike to my "Studs and duds" column as the second-biggest dud of the game.

Yards production aside, there were plays to be made for him that he consistently failed to capitalize on

Jack Sanborn, ladies and gentlemen, singlehandedly keeping the #Badgers in the game.

In all honestly I don't know how the hell he made this play

Pryor goes on on the ensuing drive, leaving Dike (who had struggled all game) as the team's No. 1 WR.

Mertz still, though, starts to find a rhythm again and move the ball down the field.

In the Red Zone (where the #Badgers, again, lost the football game):
-Another questionable bubble screen called, Mertz smartly tucks, gets 5
-Run up the middle for 1 (Middle runs didn't work as well as outside zones did all day..IU had no trouble penetrating with Bortolini at C)

3-4 from the 10:
-Had Pryor 1v1 and with separation (I stand corrected, Pryor didn't leave the game earlier on the drive)
-If Mertz's pass was a bit further to the inside, could've been a TD

Still tossed into double coverage against 2 great CBs. Don't usually see those converted

Also had Dunn at the sticks with separation. Just wasn't a high-percentage pass in a pivotal situation...

Here's the play:

Defense continued to stop IU and keep the #Badgers in the game.

But it was red zone play-calling and not sharp play from the quarterback that kept Wisconsin from evening the game

Lmao I forgot about this play...Just a complete coverage bust from Hicks and Nelson in the secondary

This really shouldn't have been a 1-possession game going down to the wire

Outside zone runs with 12 personnel continue to work well to Van Lanen's side.

Play was called back for a hold on the LG Seltzner that I really didn't see.

2 plays later:
-Wonderful job by Mertz progressing through his reads and finding Dike in a soft spot in the zone
-Pass protection continues to be great

A few plays later:
-Perfect ball from Mertz to Dike
-Great pass protection + Groshek picking up the blitzing linebacker

These are the reps that make you really excited about the Mertz--Dike connection moving forward

But, as was the case all day, the momentum stalled because Mertz airmails the third-down throw #Badgers

The following drive, as was the case all day, Tuttle continues to make key throws, IU runs the clock down to 4:48

But
-Leo Chenal continues to be a brick wall
-Williams wins vs. Fryfogle (He lost that one matchup early in the half but played really well throughout the game)

It was during these last 3 drives for the #Badgers' offense that Mertz found a rhythm and started to play really well.

It was really tough, though, with no Pryor or Davis to make the big plays when the offense needed them

I'm finishing by looking at the 2 final plays by the #Badger offense.

3-10:
-Mertz forces it to Ferguson, had AJ Abbott wide open breaking back to him with 5yds of separation (in his sightline)...Mertz locking onto a receiver and forcing passes was the case for much of the night

4-10:
-Bad snap, handled well
-Perfect pass to the corner to Dike, great play by the IU corner

Just didn't convert, and it obviously was their last chance at getting back in the game

That's it for the game. Here's what stuck out:
-IU offensive staff made it easy for Tuttle & he played a great game of football
-Mertz locked onto receivers & forced passes
-Turnovers weren't all on him, but were easily-avoidable
-RZ play-calling/decision-making was questionable

I'll be writing it all up on @Badgers_Wire later today/tonight

Final takeaway: Indiana played a really good football game with a backup under center, but if Graham Mertz plays well the #Badgers win the game