Ohio State Football: One more chance for Wisconsin’s Taylor
The Ohio State football team takes on the Wisconsin Badgers for the Big Ten Championship on Saturday night. Jonathan Taylor has one more chance to prove he can play with the Buckeyes.
Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor has had a tremendous career. In what is expected to be his second to last game as a Badger, he looks to erase the only blemish on his storied career. He can’t quite seem to figure out Ohio State.
In 2017 Taylor was finishing up a historic freshman season. With over 1,800 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns he quickly established himself as one of college football’s best backs. When it came time for the Big Ten Championship game all eyes were on him to spark Wisconsin’s offense.
Well, 15 rushes for 41 yards didn’t provide the punch that the Badgers were looking for and it was a deciding factor in the Buckeyes 27-21 victory.
Fast forward two seasons to October 26th, 2019. The Wisconsin Badgers came into Ohio Stadium to prove it can play with the big dogs. Jonathan Taylor was the unanimous best ball carrier in the nation.
This was his time to show the country that he could put this Badger offense on his back and take out the vaunted Buckeyes. 20 rushes and 52 yards later, Ohio State had a 38-7 dominate win.
It’s been the running back on the opposite sideline who has performed and delivered when it mattered most in these games. With a combined 337 yards rushing in the two contests, Buckeye running back J.K. Dobbins has shined while Taylor has fizzled.
Jonathan Taylor has one more chance to change this narrative. He knows his coach, Paul Chryst, will lean on him one more time to try to get it done. This from Cleveland.com:
"“Very motivated,” Taylor said, “I know my team will try to lean on me to make plays. I have to make sure I’m ready this week.”"
Not only does Jonathan Taylor have the opportunity to turn around his fortunes against Ohio State but so does Wisconsin. The Badgers have lost their last seven games against the Scarlet and Gray and have not beaten them since October of 2010.
They also have lost two Big Ten Championships to Ohio State in 2017 and the historic 2014 game in which Urban Meyer and his Buckeye squad crushed the Badgers 59-0.
In fact, if your take it back all the way to 2007, Wisconsin is 1-10 against Ohio State.
Paul Chryst has a huge task at his hands in order to compete with the Buckeyes on Saturday. He knows they were out played earlier in the season, via Eleven Warriors:
"“What stands out to me is that they made plays when it mattered most … What stands out to me in that game is that they beat us.”"
The Badgers have been playing well heading into this one. Four straight wins versus Iowa, Nebraska, Purdue and Minnesota have Wisconsin’s confidence high. But this one is going to come down to having their best player show up when it matters the most.
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Can Jonathan Taylor deliver the performance of his career against Ohio State and steal an undefeated season away from the Buckeyes? We will find out on Championship Saturday night in Indianapolis.