2017 Wisconsin Badgers football team

2017 Wisconsin Badgers football
Big Ten West Division champion
Orange Bowl champion
Orange Bowl, W 34–24 vs. Miami (FL)
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
DivisionWest Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 6
APNo. 7
Record13–1 (9–0 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJoe Rudolph (3rd season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorJim Leonhard (1st season)
Base defense3–4
MVPJack Cichy
Garret Dooley
Joe Ferguson
Lubern Figaro
Troy Fumagalli
Rachid Ibrahim
Leon Jacobs
Natrell Jamerson
Alec James
Chikwe Obaseh
Austin Ramesh
Conor Sheehy
Derrick Tindal
CaptainJack Cichy
Michael Deiter
D'Cota Dixon
T. J. Edwards
Troy Fumagalli
Natrell Jamerson
Alec James
Conor Sheehy
Home stadiumCamp Randall Stadium
Uniform
Seasons
← 2016
2018 →
2017 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No. 5 Ohio State xy$   8 1     12 2  
No. 15 Michigan State   7 2     10 3  
No. 8 Penn State   7 2     11 2  
Michigan   5 4     8 5  
Rutgers   3 6     4 8  
Indiana   2 7     5 7  
Maryland   2 7     4 8  
West Division
No. 7 Wisconsin xy   9 0     13 1  
No. 17 Northwestern   7 2     10 3  
Iowa   4 5     8 5  
Purdue   4 5     7 6  
Nebraska   3 6     4 8  
Minnesota   2 7     5 7  
Illinois   0 9     2 10  
Championship: Ohio State 27, Wisconsin 21
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

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.[1] 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.

  1. ^ Lesmerises, Doug (July 21, 2017). "Ohio State Buckeyes picked to win Big Ten in cleveland.com 2017 preseason poll". Cleveland.com.