Coan elevated play in victory over Purdue
MADISON – Jack Coan wasn’t perfect in Wisconsin’s victory over Purdue.
Nevertheless, Coan made more plays in his third start than he did in his first two starts combined.
“I was proud of the way Jack kept competing,” UW coach Paul Chryst said. “I thought Jack continued to progress. You’ll never play the perfect game. You strive for it.”
With Alex Hornibrook (concussion) again questionable, Coan is preparing to make his third consecutive start and fourth overall as UW (7-4, 5-3 Big Ten) hosts Minnesota (5-6, 2-6) on Saturday.
Coan’s first start came in his first appearance of the season, Oct. 27 at Northwestern.
He completed 20 of 31 passes (64.5%) for 158 yards but he lost a fumble that led to a Northwestern touchdown and UW didn’t have a pass play of 20 yards.
After replacing an injured Hornibrook for the second half against Rutgers, Coan made his second start the next week at Penn State. Surprisingly, he appeared less comfortable than he
was against Northwestern and Rutgers.
He completed just 9 of 20 attempts (45%) for 60 yards, lost two fumbles, threw two interceptions and was sacked five times. UW’s longest pass play was 15 yards.
Then in the 47-44 victory over Purdue, Coan completed 16 of 24 attempts (66.7%) for 160 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Coan hit A.J. Taylor for 34 yards on his second attempt of the game and threw accurate balls on the touchdowns to Danny Davis.
“I thought he had great poise and composure,” Chryst said. “I liked talking to him. I think guys helped him kind of navigate it. I’ve said it a bunch: experiences are invaluable.”
The poise to which Chryst referred was evident after halftime.
Coan completed his first two throws of the second half, to A.J. Taylor for 24 yards and to Garrett Groshek for 7 yards. He then missed his next five throws, however, before getting hot.
With UW facing a 27-13 deficit, Coan closed by hitting 7 of 7 attempts for 70 yards and two touchdowns both to Danny Davis.
“He was better in some things but I thought he also gave guys a chance to help him,” Chryst said. “I thought he competed. I thought he saw what was going on. I liked his whole demeanor throughout the game. Always when you continue to play there’s chances to grow and I thought he took advantage of that.”
UW caught a break when an interception was wiped out because of an interference call and Coan responded with three consecutive completions. He capped the 62-yard touchdown drive with a 5-yard strike to Davis, who made a leaping, one-handed grab on a fade.
“The one-handed catch was phenomenal,” Chryst said.
Jonathan Taylor sparked UW’s game-tying, 68-yard touchdown drive with a 35-yard run to the Purdue 33 but Coan was 3 for 3 for 38 yards on the drive. His 18-yard strike to Davis, who made the catch with a defender all over his back, capped the drive.
Coan’s lone throw in the extra periods came in the first overtime when he found tight end Jake Ferguson for 11 yards to the Purdue 12 on second and 8. Jonathan Taylor scored on the next play.
“He has always been intense but I think he was having a little more fun with it,” senior left guard Michael Deiter said of Coan’s play at Purdue. “He wanted to be intense, show that he wasn’t nervous. But I think this time he had the same intensity and the mindset: ‘I’m playing a football game. This is supercool.’
“I think he just realized that if he doesn’t make it bigger than it is he’ll be just fine.”
Since Coan has played in four games, the next game he plays will mean he can’t take advantage of a new rule that allows players who have yet to redshirt to play up to four games without burning a season of eligibility.
The staff had hoped to redshirt Coan, as long as Hornibrook remained healthy.
“If you have a chance to play, especially if you are ready, those are great opportunities,” Chryst said. “Who is to say what the future is? If you can get meaningful (snaps) those are huge experiences.
“And I think that is what guys work for. And he has earned the respect of this team and appreciation from this team.”