2001 Wisconsin Badgers football team

The 2001 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin in the 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season.

2001 Wisconsin Badgers football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
2001 record	5–7 (3–5 Big Ten)
Head coach	Barry Alvarez (12th season)
Offensive coordinator	Brian White
Defensive coordinator	Kevin Cosgrove
Home stadium	Camp Randall Stadium (Capacity: 76,634,[1] Astroturf)

2001 Big Ten Conference football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 12 Illinois $		7	–	1					10	–	2
No. 20 Michigan		6	–	2					8	–	4
Ohio State		5	–	3					7	–	5
Iowa		4	–	4					7	–	5
Purdue		4	–	4					6	–	6
Penn State		4	–	4					5	–	6
Indiana		4	–	4					5	–	6
Michigan State		3	–	5					7	–	5
Wisconsin		3	–	5					5	–	7
Minnesota		2	–	6					4	–	7
Northwestern		2	–	6					4	–	7
$ – BCS representative as conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 25	1:00 p.m.	vs. Virginia*	No. 22	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI (Eddie Robinson Classic[2])	FSN	W 26–17	76,740[3]
September 1	7:00 p.m.	at No. 7 Oregon*	No. 22	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	ABC	L 28–31	45,919[3]
September 8	11:00 a.m	No. 19 Fresno State*	No. 23	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ESPN	L 20–32	78,506[3]
September 22	11:00 a.m	at Penn State		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	ABC	W 18–6	107,253[3]
September 29	1:00 p.m	Western Kentucky*		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI		W 24–6	75,662[3]
October 6	1:00 p.m	Indiana		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI		L 32–63	79,264[3]
October 13	2:30 p.m	at No. 21 Ohio State		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ABC	W 20–17	103,520[3]
October 20	11:00 a.m	at Illinois		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ESPN	L 35–42	70,904[3]
October 27	11:00 a.m	Michigan State		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ESPN+	L 28–42	79,108[3]
November 3	11:00 a.m	Iowa		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI (rivalry)	ESPN+	W 34–28	79,421[3]
November 17	2:30 p.m	No. 11 Michigan		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ABC	L 17–20	79,633[3]
November 24	11:00 a.m	at Minnesota		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN (Paul Bunyan's Axe)	ESPN2	L 31–42	55,890[3]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Season summary

After an 8–4 regular season and a Sun Bowl win in 2000, the Badgers looked for their third Rose Bowl trip in 4 years. However, Wisconsin would be defeated in Autzen Stadium by Oregon and Camp Randall by Fresno State.

After those two losses, the Badgers won their next 2 games. But any dreams of Pasadena were dashed after Wisconsin's first Big Ten home game of the season. The Badgers lost 63–32 to Indiana, one of the worst losses in school history. While they managed to upset a ranked Ohio State team in Ohio Stadium the next week, the Badgers found themselves unable to pull off a significant win after; losing four of their final five to close out the season. While the Badgers managed to keep it close against both Illinois and Michigan, they were unable to pull off an upset of either team, losing another close game to Michigan, 20–17.

Despite a disappointing season, the Badgers had some bright spots. WR Lee Evans had an amazing season, as he would catch 75 passes for 1,545 yards and 9 touchdowns,[4] despite having 3 different QBs during the year (Brooks Bollinger, Jim Sorgi, and Matt Schabert). RB Anthony Davis also turned in an outstanding season, with 1,466 yards rushing[4] Davis would have 10 games of 100 or more yards rushing, including a season high 200 against Penn State.

Despite these great efforts from skill position players, the Badgers had injuries at the QB position, as well as difficulties on defense all season long. The Badgers were 2–3 in games decided by 7 points or less and would lose 7 games on the year, missing the postseason entirely.

Roster

2001 Wisconsin Badgers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class TE 88 Mark Bell So FB 39 Erik Bickerstaff Jr TE 81 Mark Anelli Sr QB 5 Brooks Bollinger Jr RB 28 Anthony Davis Fr WR 22 Nick Davis Sr WR 3 Lee Evans So C 72 Al Johnson Jr T 64 Ben Johnson Jr OL 56 Jason Jowers Jr QB 19 Jim Sorgi So	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 7 Ryan Aiello So DB 8 Michael Broussard So DT 77 Wendell Bryant Sr CB 36 Mike Echols Sr LB 49 Nick Greisen Sr LB 12 Alex Lewis So LB 46 Jeff Mack Jr DE 99 Jake Sprague Jr CB 2 Scott Starks Fr CB 23 B. J. Tucker Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Barry Alvarez Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Regular starters

Position Player Quarterback Brooks Bollinger Running Back Anthony Davis Fullback Chad Kuhns Wide Receiver Lee Evans Wide Receiver Nick Davis Tight End Mark Anelli Left Tackle Ben Johnson Left Guard Dan Buenning Center Al Johnson Right Guard Kalvin Barrett/Jonathan Clinkscale Right Tackle Jason Jowers

Position Player Defensive Tackle Chuck Smith Nose Tackle Ben Herbert Defensive Tackle Wendell Bryant Rush End Delante McGrew Outside Linebacker Jeff Mack Inside Linebacker Bryson Thompson Outside Linebacker Nick Greisen Cornerback Mike Echols Free Safety Joey Boese Strong Safety Michael Broussard Cornerback Scott Starks

Team players in the 2002 NFL Draft

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL Club
Wendell Bryant	Defensive Tackle	1	12	Arizona Cardinals
Mike Echols	Cornerback	4	110	Tennessee Titans
Nick Greisen	Linebacker	5	152	New York Giants
Mark Anelli	Tight End	6	201	San Francisco 49ers

[5]

References

1. http://www.nationalchamps.net/NCAA/college_football_2001_schedules/wisconsin.htm
2. Martzke, Rudy (August 24, 2001). "Little League Hits It Big: Prime Time". USA Today. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
3. "Game-by-Game Statistics". University of Wisconsin Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on 2012-05-12. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-06-22. Retrieved 2010-12-22.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
5. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2002.htm