2017 Wisconsin Badgers football team

The 2017 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Badgers, led by third-year head coach Paul Chryst, were members of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference and played their home games at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.

Coming off a Cotton Bowl-winning season in 2016, the 2017 team began the year ranked ninth in the preseason AP Poll and were the favorites to repeat as West Division champions and return to the Big Ten Championship Game. The Badgers fulfilled that expectation by winning all 12 of their regular season games, including wins over ranked opponents Iowa and Michigan. They entered the 2017 Big Ten Championship Game ranked third in the AP Poll, with a potential spot in the College Football Playoff on the line, but fell to No. 8 Ohio State, 21–27. Wisconsin was invited to the Orange Bowl, where they defeated Miami (FL). Their 13 wins were the most in school history.

The Badgers were led on offense by freshman running back Jonathan Taylor, who led the Big Ten and was third in FBS in rushing yards with 1,977 yards. He was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and first-team All-Big Ten. Quarterback Alex Hornibrook finished with 2,644 passing yards and 25 touchdowns. On defense, linebacker T. J. Edwards was named a first-team All-American by the Associated Press and ESPN.

Recruits
The Badgers signed a total of 18 recruits.

Watchlists and preseason awards

 * Michael Deiter


 * Rimington Trophy


 * Troy Fumagalli
 * John Mackey Award

Schedule
Wisconsin's 2017 schedule consisted of seven home and five away games in the regular season. The Badgers hosted Big Ten foes Northwestern, Purdue, Maryland, Iowa, and Michigan, while traveling to Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana, and Minnesota.

The team also played three non-conference games: the Utah State Aggies from the Mountain West Conference (MWC), the Florida Atlantic Owls from Conference USA, and the FBS independent BYU Cougars

Utah State
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 9 carries, 87 yards (long 41), 9.7 yards/carry, 1 touchdown
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 15 completions, 23 passing attempts, 244 yards, 16.3 avg, 3 touchdowns
 * Receiving: Troy Fumagalli – 5 receptions, 105 yards (long 44), 21.0 avg, 1 touchdown
 * Defense: T. J. Edwards – 7 Tackles (5 solo), 1 tackle-for-loss for 1 yd, 2 pass breakups, 1 interception for 7 yds

Florida Atlantic
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 26 carries, 223 yards (long 64), 8.6 yards/carry, 3 touchdowns
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 16 completions, 28 passing attempts, 201 yards, 12.6 avg, 1 touchdown, 1 interception
 * Receiving: Troy Fumagalli – 8 receptions, 92 yards (long 20), 11.5 avg, 1 touchdown
 * Defense: Chris Orr – 8 Tackles (6 solo), 1 tackle-for-loss for 3 yds, 1 sack for loss of 3 yds

At BYU
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 18 carries, 128 yards (long 18), 7.1 yards/carry, 1 touchdown
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 18 completions, 19 passing attempts, 256 yards, 14.2 avg, 4 touchdowns
 * Receiving: Quintez Cephus – 5 receptions, 54 yards (long 16), 10.8 avg, 2 touchdowns
 * Defense: Dontye Carriere-Williams – 8 Tackles (6 solo), 1 interception for 0 yds

Northwestern
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 19 carries, 80 yards (long 11), 4.2 yards/carry, 2 touchdowns
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 11 completions, 20 passing attempts, 197 yards, 17.9 avg, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions
 * Receiving: Quintez Cephus – 4 receptions, 99 yards (long 61), 24.6 avg
 * Defense: Garret Dooley – 9 Tackles (3 solo), 5 tackles-for-loss for 20 yds, 3.5 sacks for loss of 17 yds

At Nebraska
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 25 carries, 249 yards (long 75), 10.0 yards/carry, 2 touchdowns
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 9 completions, 17 passing attempts, 113 yards, 12.6 avg, 1 touchdown, 1 interception
 * Receiving: Quintez Cephus – 4 receptions, 68 yards (long 31), 17.0 avg, 1 touchdown
 * Defense: D'Cota Dixon – 9 Tackles (6 solo), 1 pass breakup

Purdue

 * Sources:

Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 30 carries, 219 yards (long 67), 7.3 yards/carry, 1 touchdown
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 13 completions, 18 passing attempts, 199 yards, 15.3 avg, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions
 * Receiving: Quintez Cephus – 5 receptions, 100 yards (long 41), 20.0 avg, 1 touchdown
 * Defense: Leon Jacobs – 9 Tackles (4 solo), 0.5 tackle-for-loss for 1 yd, 1 interception for 2 yds, 1 QB hurry

Maryland
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 22 carries, 126 yards (long 15), 5.7 yards/carry, 1 touchdown
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 16 completions, 24 passing attempts, 225 yards, 14.1 avg, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception
 * Receiving: Troy Fumagalli – 7 receptions, 83 yards (long 20), 11.9 avg
 * Defense: T. J. Edwards – 5 Tackles (3 solo), 1 interception return 54 yds for a touchdown, 1 pass breakup

At Illinois
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 12 carries, 73 yards (long 29), 6.1 yards/carry
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 10 completions, 19 passing attempts, 135 yards, 13.5 avg, 1 interception
 * Receiving: Kendric Pryor – 2 receptions, 37 yards (long 19), 18.5 avg
 * Defense: Garret Dooley – 5 Tackles (3 solo), 1 tackle-for-loss for 6 yds, 1 sack for 6 yd loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 pass breakup

At Indiana
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 29 carries, 183 yards (long 45), 6.3 yards/carry, 1 touchdown
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 13 completions, 20 passing attempts, 158 yards, 12.2 avg, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception
 * Receiving: Kendric Pryor – 3 receptions, 63 yards (long 32), 21.0 avg
 * Defense: Nick Nelson – 5 Tackles (5 solo), 1 tackle-for-loss for 3 yds, 4 pass breakups

Iowa
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 29 carries, 157 yards (long 19), 5.4 yards/carry
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 11 completions, 18 passing attempts, 135 yards, 12.3 avg, 2 touchdowns, 3 interceptions
 * Receiving: Danny Davis – 4 receptions, 74 yards (long 28), 18.5 avg
 * Defense: Ryan Connelly – 9 Tackles (6 solo), 2 tackles-for-loss for 14 yds, 1 sack for loss 12 yds, 1 forced fumble, 1 QB hurry

Michigan
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 19 carries, 132 yards (long 52), 6.9 yards/carry
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 9 completions, 19 passing attempts, 143 yards, 15.9 avg, 1 touchdown, 1 interception
 * Receiving: A. J. Taylor – 3 receptions, 79 yards (long 51), 26.3 avg, 1 touchdown
 * Defense: T. J. Edwards – 11 Tackles (7 solo), 2.5 tackles-for-loss for 12 yds, 1 sack for loss 10 yds, 1 pass breakup, 1 QB hurry

At Minnesota
Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 20 carries, 149 yards (long 53), 7.5 yards/carry, 1 touchdown
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 15 completions, 19 passing attempts, 151 yards, 10.1 avg, 3 touchdowns
 * Receiving: Danny Davis – 5 receptions, 41 yards (long 10), 8.2 avg, 1 touchdown
 * Defense: Ryan Connelly – 6 Tackles (5 solo), 3.0 tackles-for-loss for 26 yds, 2 sacks for loss 24 yds

Vs. Ohio State
The No. 3 Wisconsin Badgers (12-1, 9-0) were defeated by the No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes (11-2, 8-1) 27-21 at Lucas Oil Stadium in the Big Ten Championship. Paul Chryst is now 0-2 versus the Buckeyes, and Urban Meyer is now 5-0 versus the Badgers, though two of the victories came in overtime. This was Wisconsin's fifth appearance in the Championship game, and their second straight and Ohio State's third.

Statistical Leaders
 * Rushing: Jonathan Taylor – 15 carries, 41 yards (long 7), 2.7 yards/carry
 * Passing: Alex Hornibrook – 19 completions, 40 passing attempts, 229 yards, 12.1 avg, 2 interceptions
 * Receiving: Troy Fumagalli – 5 receptions, 45 yards (long 11), 9.0 avg
 * Defense: Andrew Van Ginkel – 3 Tackles (1 solo), 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception returned 9 yds for touchdown

Injuries
At the start of the season four players were announced as out for the season due to injury; Senior ILB Jack Cichy (right knee), Freshman ILB Mason Stokke (right leg), Sophomore OLB Zack Baun (left foot), Freshman RB Sam Brodner (right knee).

Signed undrafted free agents

 * Garret Dooley, LB, Minnesota Vikings
 * Alec James, DE, Arizona Cardinals
 * Austin Ramesh, FB, Arizona Cardinals
 * Connor Sheehy, DE, Green Bay Packers