Hornibrook, Davis connect for 3 TDs in Badgers’ bowl win
Hornibrook avoids interceptions, throws for 4 TDs
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Quarterback Alex Hornibrook, coming off a subpar performance in the Big Ten title game, was on fire.
Tailback Jonathan Taylor, a non-factor in the Big Ten title game, set the FBS mark for rushing yards by a freshman.
Wisconsin’s defense gave up a handful of big plays and quick strikes but rose up when it mattered most.
The result for No. 6 UW was an exhilarating 34-24 victory over No. 11 Miami in the Orange Bowl in front of a crowd of 65,032 Saturday night at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Badgers (13-1) capped off the most successful season in program history by becoming the first UW team to win 13 games.
The lone loss came against Ohio State in the Big Ten title game, a defeat that knocked UW out of the College Football Playoff.
“I think everybody in the country wants to be in the playoff,” redshirt junior linebacker T.J. Edwards said before the game. “But you know, just with how the season turned out, it’s not where we ended up.
“But we worked like crazy to get to this point and we’ve had a really good season thus far. This last game is our national championship.”
Miami, which was 10-0 and No. 2 in the College Football Playoff rankings, suffered its third consecutive loss to finish 10-3.
“They are a great team,” Miami coach Mark Richt said. “You don’t win as many
games as they win without being that type of a football team.”
Hornibrook hit 23 of 34 attempts for 258 yards for four touchdowns. He did not throw an interception against a defense that entered the night with 17. He was named the Most Outstanding Player.
Taylor entered the night needing 79 yards to break Adrian Peterson’s record of 1,925 yards. He rushed 26 times for 130 yards to finish the season with 1,977 yards.
Freshman Danny Davis caught three of Hornibrook’s touchdown passes – for 19, 5 and 6 yards. He finished with five catches for 56 yards. A.J. Taylor led the receiving corps with eight catches for 105 yards and a touchdown.
UW’s defense surrendered 148 yards and 14 points in the opening quarter but forced three turnovers and frustrated the Miami offense for much of the night.
Linebacker Alex Van Ginkel, cornerback Derrick Tindal and linebacker Ryan Connelly had the interceptions for UW, which limited Miami to 229 yards and 10 points over the final three quarters.
Hornibrook overcame a slow start with an impressive three-series performance to help UW turn a 14-3 deficit into a 24-14 halftime lead.
The redshirt sophomore was 3 of 8 for 16 yards on UW’s first four possessions. He hit 10 of 12 attempts for 115 yards and three touchdowns on the next three possessions as UW put together drives of 23, 71 and 62 yards.
Van Ginkel’s interception, with Miami holding a 14-3 lead, sparked the turnaround. That gave UW the ball at the Miami 23 with 14 minutes 56 seconds left in the second quarter and Hornibrook hit Davis for a 19-yard touchdown to start the rally.
Miami recorded its 31st takeaway of the season on UW’s opening drive when Jonathan Taylor fumbled at the end of a 17yard run. The call on the field was that Taylor was down but the replay official overturned the call and the Hurricanes took over at their 33 with 13:11 left in the quarter.
The Hurricanes drove to the UW 36 but failed convert on third and 9 and Michael Badgley missed a 53-yard field-goal attempt with 11:16 left in the quarter.
UW took advantage of the excellent field position and drove to the Miami 17. But Miami blew up a screen play on second and 8 and Hornibrook and A.J. Taylor
could not connect on a throw into the end zone on third down.
Rafael Gaglianone salvaged three points with a 35-yard field goal with 7:58 left in the quarter.
The 3-0 lead lasted just 2:37, which is how long it took Miami to drive from its 25 to the end zone.
Quarterback Malik Rosier hit one pass for 22 yards, ran twice for 25 yards and Travis Homer had runs of 11 and 5 yards, with the second going for a touchdown with 5:21 left in the quarter. Badgley hit the extra-point attempt for a 7-3 lead and Miami rushed six times for 53 yards on the drive.
After UW went three and out and Anthony Lotti got off a 39-yard punt, Miami needed just two plays to drive 45 yards for a touchdown.
Wide receiver DeeJay Dallas came in to run the wildcat formation and gained 6 yards on first down and then avoided three defenders on a 39-yard run to help the Hurricanes take a 14-3 lead.
Connelly, safety Natrell Jamerson and cornerback Dontye Carriere-Williams missed tackles on the play.
UW punted after five plays on its next possession but Lotti hit a 45 yarder and the Hurricanes started at their 33.
Two plays later, Ginkel intercepted a pass by Rosier to give UW the ball at the Miami 23.
The offense turned the turnover into a touchdown when Hornibrook hit Davis for a 19-yard score to help cut the deficit to 14-10 with 13:37 left in the half.
UW wasn’t finished.
The defense forced a three-and-out and Hornibrook directed a 12-play, 71-yard touchdown drive.
Hornibrook hit 4 of 4 attempts for 46 yards on the drive, with the final 16 coming on a strike to A.J. Taylor with 5:49 left in the half. That helped UW take the lead back, 17-14.
UW’s defense continued to frustrate Miami and Hornibrook continued to make big throws.
After Miami went three-and-out again, UW took over at its 38.
Hornibrook hit 4 of 6 passes for 48 yards on the 62-yard drive, which he capped with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Davis to help UW take a 24-14 lead with 28 seconds left in the half.
Beginning with Van Ginkel’s interception, UW put together touchdown drives of 23, 71 and 62 yards to take the 24-14 lead.
Hornibrook hit 10 of 12 passes for 115 yards and three touchdowns on those drives.
Miami, by contrast, did nothing after Dallas’ 39-yard touchdown run.
The Hurricanes had the ball four more times and managed a total of 2 yards and no first downs on nine plays.
Miami struck first in the third quarter to get back within one score.
The Hurricanes took over at the UW 46 after a 32-yard punt and needed just two plays to score. Rosier found wide receiver Lawrence Cager behind cornerback Nick Nelson for a 38-yard score to help cut the deficit to 24-21 with 10:52 left in the quarter.
After UW went three-and-out, the Hurricanes took over at their 39 and moved to the UW 24.
But on second and 10, Rosier tried to hit Cager over the middle. Tindal undercut the route and intercepted the pass in the end zone for a touchback with 8:48 left in the quarter.
UW moved the ball to the Miami 29 before Gaglianone drilled a 47-yard field goal to push the lead to 27-21 with 3:39 left in the quarter.
After the teams traded empty possessions, Miami put together 10-play drive that ended with a 41-yard field goal by Badgley to cut UW’s lead to 27-24.
How would UW’s offense, which had generated one field goal on four series, respond?
With a vengeance. Hornibrook hit 6 of 6 passes for 76 yards to help UW take a 34-24 lead with 7:44 remaining in the game. Tight end Troy Fumagalli, without a catch before the drive, had three for 32 yards on the drive. Hornibrook capped the drive with a 6yard strike to Davis, for the freshmen’s third score of the night.
Miami came right back and moved from its 25 to the UW 10 in four plays, with Rosier hitting wide receiver Jeff Thomas for 48 yards to the 10.
UW’s defense held, with Van Ginkel pulling Rosier down after a 1-yard gain to the 6 on third and goal.
Badgley, who entered the night 16 of 20 on field-goal attempts, missed from 24 yards this time. The ball hit the right upright and bounced away and UW had a 10-point lead and the ball with 4:34 left.
UW, which held the ball for 39:52, didn’t give the ball back until just 1:37 remained. Connelly’s interception with 1:19 left secured the victory.
“Every team that plays in a bowl game, they want to win their last game,” UW coach Paul Chryst said before the game. “It’s the last game for us that this group will be together. We’ll have guys go on.
“So you’re proud of what they’ve done and I think our team is proud of what they’ve done, and yet they know we’re not finished yet.
“We know what the talk was outside but what we were playing for all year long was the right to give ourselves the best chance we can to be the best team we can be.
“And fortunately we’ve got another opportunity against a really good Miami team and if we score one or more points than them, then we’ve earned the right to be Orange Bowl champions. That’s something to really be proud of.”