Wisconsin Football: 3 takeaways from big win over Purdue in Week 13

3. Wisconsin has a long-ball kicker worth trotting out on the field

Rare are the moments when a kicker truly leads a person’s jaw to drop. But on Saturday afternoon, Wisconsin kickoff specialist Zach Hintze did just that when Paul Chryst let him go on the field at the end of the first half to try his leg out against the Boilermakers rush.

With the temperature just a few degrees above freezing, the football was stiff in the long snapper’s hands as he awaited the signal. Set up on the other side of midfield, the holder kneeled at the Wisconsin 48. Hintze stepped back a few paces and situated himself to put maximum force into the ball that was about to tee up.

The snap came through strong and true, and the hold set the ball up perfectly for Hintze. His left leg planted on the run-up and his right leg drove the rough the ball cleanly. Putting everything he could muster into the effort, Hintze sent the ball flying over the outstretched arms of the Boilermakers block unit and toward the uprights.

The ball fell in the only spot possible to net points, nearly grazing the crossbar and the left upright as it dropped through for three points as time ran out on the second quarter. If and when the Badgers are put in a similar situation with a do-or-die kick needed, Hintze certainly showed that he is capable of coming through in the clutch.