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| Wisconsin's Russell Wilson celebrates with a rose after the 42-39 win against Michigan State. (Andy Lyons, Getty Images / December 3, 2011) |
INDIANAPOLIS — The Big Ten should adopt a new motto: We can't win a BCS title game, but we ain't boring.
Fans sitting at the 50-yard line of this wild inaugural Big Ten championship game should sue the league for whiplash.
And fans sitting in the Wisconsin section might want to check their hearing after the Badgers twice rallied from eight points down to claim a thrilling 42-39 victory before a non-sellout crowd of 64,152 at Lucas Oil Stadium, claiming a spot in the Rose Bowl.
"Wow," Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said on the field after the game.
Said Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson: "100 years from now, people will look back and say: 'Who won that game?' It was Wisconsin."
Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio called it "an instant classic, for sure."
The game ended in dispiriting fashion for the Spartans, who fell to 10-3.
Michigan State forced a punt with a little under two minutes to play, and Keshawn Martin ran it back inside Wisconsin's 5-yard line.
But Isaiah Lewis came off the edge and charged into punter Brad Nortman, drawing a 5-yard penalty for running into the kicker. It was enough for a Wisconsin first down, sealing the victory and drawing boos from Michigan State fans.
"I didn't see the punter fall or anything," receiver B.J. Cunningham said, "but the ref made the call and you have to go with it. I didn't really think it was a penalty."
Said quarterback Kirk Cousins: "Isaiah shouldn't be singled out. He did nothing wrong. He went in for the block. He gave 100 percent effort, and the call didn't go our way."
"I thought (Nortman) flopped a little bit," Dantonio said. "If (Lewis) hit him, he just nicked him."
Wisconsin's Bret Bielema disagreed, saying: "I don't think so. I think the guy ran into him."
Although a punt ended up being the game's final key play, this was anything but the SEC title game punt-fest that LSU dominated.
Wisconsin (11-2) and Michigan State combined to produce 816 yards and four trick plays — three drawn up, one on the fly. Each worked perfectly.
One involved a 5-foot-8, 176-pound holder (Michigan State's Brad Sonntag) taking a snap and sprinting in for a two-point conversion. It was a brilliant call, and it gave Michigan State a 22-21 lead, its first of the night.
The Spartans got the opportunity when Cousins hit Keith Nichol — he of the Hail Mary catch in the first meeting between these teams — for a short pass. Rather than get pushed out of bounds by two defenders, Nichol lateraled to Cunningham, who took it the final 7 yards, leaping home for a score.
Cunningham later took a pitch and ran it 24 yards on a reverse.
Wisconsin's game-winning drive began with 8:20 to play.
Fans sitting at the 50-yard line of this wild inaugural Big Ten championship game should sue the league for whiplash.
And fans sitting in the Wisconsin section might want to check their hearing after the Badgers twice rallied from eight points down to claim a thrilling 42-39 victory before a non-sellout crowd of 64,152 at Lucas Oil Stadium, claiming a spot in the Rose Bowl.
"Wow," Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said on the field after the game.
Said Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson: "100 years from now, people will look back and say: 'Who won that game?' It was Wisconsin."
Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio called it "an instant classic, for sure."
The game ended in dispiriting fashion for the Spartans, who fell to 10-3.
Michigan State forced a punt with a little under two minutes to play, and Keshawn Martin ran it back inside Wisconsin's 5-yard line.
But Isaiah Lewis came off the edge and charged into punter Brad Nortman, drawing a 5-yard penalty for running into the kicker. It was enough for a Wisconsin first down, sealing the victory and drawing boos from Michigan State fans.
"I didn't see the punter fall or anything," receiver B.J. Cunningham said, "but the ref made the call and you have to go with it. I didn't really think it was a penalty."
Said quarterback Kirk Cousins: "Isaiah shouldn't be singled out. He did nothing wrong. He went in for the block. He gave 100 percent effort, and the call didn't go our way."
"I thought (Nortman) flopped a little bit," Dantonio said. "If (Lewis) hit him, he just nicked him."
Wisconsin's Bret Bielema disagreed, saying: "I don't think so. I think the guy ran into him."
Although a punt ended up being the game's final key play, this was anything but the SEC title game punt-fest that LSU dominated.
Wisconsin (11-2) and Michigan State combined to produce 816 yards and four trick plays — three drawn up, one on the fly. Each worked perfectly.
One involved a 5-foot-8, 176-pound holder (Michigan State's Brad Sonntag) taking a snap and sprinting in for a two-point conversion. It was a brilliant call, and it gave Michigan State a 22-21 lead, its first of the night.
The Spartans got the opportunity when Cousins hit Keith Nichol — he of the Hail Mary catch in the first meeting between these teams — for a short pass. Rather than get pushed out of bounds by two defenders, Nichol lateraled to Cunningham, who took it the final 7 yards, leaping home for a score.
Cunningham later took a pitch and ran it 24 yards on a reverse.
Wisconsin's game-winning drive began with 8:20 to play.
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