Wisconsin Sinks Minnesota's Boat, Reclaims the Axe

Wisconsin has the Axe again — and PJ Fleck is still a douche. Nature is healing.

Luke Fickell and the University of Wisconsin football team (7-5, 5-4 B1G) traveled to Minnesota for the regular season finale with one goal in mind: bringing the Axe back home where it belongs...and that's exactly what the Badgers did — knocking off the Gophers 28-14 at Huntington Bank Stadium. 

With the win, Wisconsin owns the all-time series lead 63-62-8 — and has claimed the Axe in 17 of the last 20 meetings between the two programs. Not to mention, the Badgers have now totaled 22 straight winning seasons since 2002 — the longest streak among Power 5 teams. 

Here are a few things that stood out from the Wisconsin Badgers week 13 win over PJ Fleck and the Gophers.

Wisconsin’s Offense Rallied Behind Braleon Allen 

The Wisconsin football team finished with 412 total yards of offense against the Gophers on an impressive 6.2 yards per play — largely thanks to the Badgers rushing attack.

UW racked up 267 rushing yards on the day — and relied heavily on star tailback Braelon Allen to get the job done. The Fond du Lac native carried the ball 26 times for 165 yards and two rushing touchdowns. Allen also had three receptions for 27 yards. In short, he did it all for the Badgers.

For Allen, it was his fifth multi-score game of the season and the 11th of his career. The Wisconsin Badgers are 10-1 when he reaches that mark for his career and 5-0 this season. He now has 20 games of 100+ rushing yards  under his belt — tying Allen for 6th in school history with PJ Hill. Lastly, Agent 0 moved into 9th place in Wisconsin football program history in rushing yards with 3,494.

The 6-foot-2, 245-pound running back's NFL Draft prospects might lead him to consider an early entry after his junior season, a move not uncommon given his injury history — and the short shelf life of the position at the next level suggests that could be a smart move.

While speculation about Allen's future remains uncertain, there's a growing sense that Saturday marked Allen's final appearance in a Wisconsin football uniform. If that's the case, he undoubtedly saved his best for last.

Badgers Defense Overcame Slow Start, Made an Impact 

The Wisconsin Badgers' defensive struggles early in games have been a concerning trend that continued in their recent clash against Minnesota.

UW allowed the Gophers to quickly march down the field, claiming a 7-0 lead within the first three minutes—marking the fourth consecutive game where their defense allowed an opening-drive touchdown.

Minnesota capitalized immediately, exploiting gaps in the Wisconsin football defense that put the Badgers in a tough spot early. Thankfully, Mike Tressel and company didn't wait until the second half to make wholesale adjustments — and gave up just one more touchdown in the final 10 defensive possessions.