Wisconsin Football: 3 takeaways from home defeat to Penn State

The Badgers dominated the stat sheet but walked away losers. Here are three things we learned about Wisconsin football from Penn State’s win at Camp Randall Stadium.

The home opener for the Wisconsin football team against No. 19 Penn State was one of just four matchups between Top 25 teams in Week 1. On paper, the showdown at Camp Randall Stadium always looked like the type of Big Ten slobberknocker that was destined to end in a defensive struggle.

Penn State came to Madison breaking in their second new offensive coordinator in as many seasons in hopes of regaining Sean Clifford’s confidence. Wisconsin was still looking for their next great tailback and hoping that Graham Mertz could find the form he displayed against Illinois for an entire season.

The interdivisional Big Ten showdown yielded no points in the first half. Things picked up more after halftime, as the Badgers and Nittany Lions seemed to find their rhythm during the intermission. It was still a slog to the finish line, as both teams dominated on defense.

By the final gun, Wisconsin walked off the turf vanquished in front of their home fans, the Camp Randall scoreboard reading 16-10 in the Nittany Lions’ favor. Though Paul Chryst’s team won big in terms of yardage gained and time of possession, they proved the old adage that points are all that really matters.

What else did we learn about this year’s Wisconsin team from the season opener? Here are three takeaways from the tense takedown of the Nittany Lions on the first Saturday of September.