The Wisconsin Badgers beat the Miami (OH) RedHawks in a 17-0 shutout to start the season, getting through some adversity with a strong defensive performance.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Football: 4 winners and 2 losers after Week 1
While it wasn’t the prettiest game, there was much to take away from the game, as several players made their mark, while others disappointed in the season opener.
Whose stock is up and whose stock is down after the season opener?
Stock Up: Sebastian Cheeks
Outside linebacker Mason Reiger’s stock was already high after a strong showing during fall camp. And he proved that with a great complementary performance on Thursday, stopping the run at a high level, while constantly generating pressure as a pass-rusher.
But, nobody improved their stock more in the outside linebacker room than Sebastian Cheeks, who was dominant in the opener.
Cheeks was a constant presence up front, showing good effort, edge-setting ability, and even getting pressure on the quarterback. After moving to outside linebacker last offseason, Cheeks was seen as a pass-rushing specialist.
But, he’s bulked up and now is a three-down player, having good pursuit and good edge setting for quarterback contains, while also teeing up off the edge alongside Reiger. That duo should be a big positive for Wisconsin this season.
Stock Down: Davis Heinzen at LT
One of the biggest question marks heading into the season was who would play at left tackle after Kevin Heywood’s torn ACL in the spring. Former Vanderbilt transfer Leyton Nelson struggled when stepping up with the first-team offense back in the spring, which led to guard Joe Brunner getting some reps at tackle.
That led Wisconsin to nab Central Michigan transfer Davis Heinzen in the spring transfer portal, hoping to get some experience at the position.
Then, in the fall, the Badgers tested out a few options, with Brunner, Heinzen, and guard-turned-tackle J.P. Benzschawel getting reps before Wisconsin settled on Heinzen.
Well, the left tackle really struggled in Week 1, both in pass protection and in the run game, albeit much more in the former. He gave up five pressures and two sacks, according to PFF, but there just didn’t seem to be any stability on the left side for quarterback Danny O’Neil.
Wisconsin did pull Heinzen late for Leyton Nelson, who got the final seven snaps of the game. They face Middle Tennessee State this week, and there may need to be some conversations about moving around the offensive line, given the daunting schedule ahead of the Badgers this season.
Wisconsin could move Brunner out to left tackle, but they don’t have much depth either at tackle or on the interior, raising questions as to who their five best linemen could be.
Stock Up: Christian Alliegro
Wisconsin has had experience, but not really much consistency, over the past few years at linebacker, where the standard of play has certainly dropped from the program’s historical record.
Well, Christian Alliegro had a strong start to the year as the team’s lead linebacker, making plays and showing off his athleticism and versatility. Now, everything wasn’t clean: Alliegro had a bad edge set on the defense’s third drive that allowed a run to kick out to the edge, which was an issue for the defense last year. He also missed a tackle that would’ve led to a sack on a well-timed linebacker blitz.
But, the linebacker wrapped up well on open field tackles, making some major momentum plays there, including a big sack as quarterback Daequan Finn escaped the pocket, and finished with four tackles.
It’s Week 1 against an opponent Wisconsin needed to beat convincingly, but I like what I saw from the linebacker play on Thursday.
Stock Down: Atticus Bertrams’s shank
The Badgers have dealt with special teams woes over the past few years. So, it wasn’t pretty to see Atticus Bertrams shank his first punt, which went for only 20 yards and gave the RedHawks prime field position early in the game.
Now, the defense settled in, and Bertrams punted well enough afterwards, averaging 42.5 yards per punt outside of the miss, but consistency needs to be there for the Badgers punter.
Stock Up: Jeff Grimes’s creativity
We didn’t get to see the full look after Billy Edwards’s injury, but Jeff Grimes’s offense is trending up after Week 1.
There were quite a few players who got a touch, with Grimes mixing up the run game to involve receivers and running backs, and he had the right adjustments early after a quick punt.
Understanding Miami’s initial aggressiveness against the run, Grimes began to dial up the quick passing game, which Billy Edwards executed well, moving the ball down the field. That opened up the run game, with the creativity showing from Grimes.
It may be a while before Edwards gets back under center, but you can see the potential of this offense when things are going well and if those deep shots start to hit.
After transferring in last offseason, Brandon Lane didn’t have as big a role as initially expected. Then, Wisconsin brought in a boatload of transfers this offseason, raising questions about where Lane fits in this year.
Well, that’s with the starters, as Lane was a force on Thursday, especially as a pass-rusher, where he was able to drive interior linemen back into the pocket and make things uncomfortable for quarterback Daequan Finn.
Wisconsin rotated a ton, but Lane was second amongst defensive linemen in snaps and seems to be a regular in the rotation going forward.
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Wisconsin
8-year-old dies in hospital after icy Wisconsin crash
RICHMOND TOWNSHIP, Wis. (FOX 9) – A crash in western Wisconsin killed an 8-year-old boy and seriously injured a 27-year-old Wednesday morning.
Fatal crash in Richmond Township, Wisconsin
What we know:
According to St. Croix County, just before 10 a.m., deputies responded to a crash on the 1500 block of County Road A.
Authorities say that a 27-year-old woman was driving a van southbound, and lost control on an icy curve and collided with another vehicle.
The woman suffered serious injuries from the crash and was taken to the hospital to be treated, law enforcement said. The boy was critically injured, and was also taken to the hospital, where he later died.
Both were wearing seat belts during the crash.
The driver of the other vehicle was treated for minor injuries at the scene and was released.
This is the 10th traffic fatality in St. Croix County.
What we don’t know:
The current condition of the woman is unknown.
The Source: A press release from St. Croix County Sheriff’s Office.
Wisconsin
Judge refuses call from Trump’s former Wisconsin lawyer to step away from fake elector case
Jim Troupis, the former Trump campaign lawyer, charged in fake elector scheme speaks out
Jim Troupis, the former Trump campaign lawyer from Dane County swept up in charges over an alleged fake elector scheme, speaks out about the case.
MADISON – A Wisconsin judge is refusing calls from President Donald Trump’s former campaign attorney to step down from a case accusing the attorney of felony forgery charges over his alleged role in a scheme to overturn the 2020 election result.
Dane County Circuit Judge John Hyland on Tuesday rejected a motion from Jim Troupis, a former Dane County judge who represented Trump’s 2020 campaign in Wisconsin, to step down from the case. Troupis alleged judicial misconduct.
Hyland also rejected a motion to postpone a Monday hearing in the case, according to court records.
Troupis argued Hyland should step aside because Troupis believed retired Dane County Judge Frank Remington actually wrote a previous order in the case, according to the Associated Press. Troupis alleged that Remington had ill will against Troupis. Hyland said Remington did not help write the order and rejected the motion.
In 2024, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul filed felony charges against Troupis, Kenneth Chesebro, a Wisconsin native and lead architect of the 2020 elector scheme, and former Trump aide Mike Roman, who allegedly delivered Wisconsin’s slate of false elector paperwork to a Pennsylvania congressman’s staffer to get them to Vice President Mike Pence on Jan. 6, 2021.
The three face 11 charges relating to felony forgery and forgery meant to defraud the Republican electors who cast their ballots for Trump, even though Joe Biden, a Democrat, won the state’s presidential election. Each of the 11 charges against the men carries the same maximum penalty of six years in prison, in addition to a $10,000 fine.
According to the complaint against Troupis, Chesebro and Roman, most of the Trump electors said they did not consent to having their signatures presented as if Trump had won the state without a court ruling saying so. The complaint also describes how Chesebro, Troupis and Roman allegedly created a fake document that said Trump won Wisconsin’s 10 Electoral College votes and then attempted to deliver it to Pence for certification.
Federal prosecutors have said the fake electors plot originated in Wisconsin.
Biden beat Trump by about 21,000 votes in Wisconsin. Trump sought recounts in Dane and Milwaukee counties, which confirmed Biden’s win. Trump sued and the state Supreme Court upheld the results on a 4-3 vote on Dec. 14, 2020. Troupis represented the Trump campaign in the case.
Less than an hour later, Democrats met in the state Capitol to cast the state’s 10 electoral votes for Biden.
At the same time, the Republican fake electors gathered in another part of the Capitol to fill out paperwork claiming Trump had won.
They submitted their filings to Congress, the National Archives, a federal judge and then-Wisconsin Secretary of State Doug La Follette. Chesebro was in the room during the meeting.
At the time, the fake electors said they held the meeting only to ensure the state’s electoral votes were cast for Trump if a court later determined he was the true winner of the state.
In efforts to have the case dismissed, Troupis claimed the electors met and cast their ballot only to preserve their legal options, in case the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Trump the winner of Wisconsin, arguing no crime was committed.
The 10 electors have not been criminally charged related to the fake documents. The group settled a lawsuit in 2023 filed by the real Biden electors against them over their role in the scheme. As a part of the settlement, the false electors acknowledged their actions were used in an attempt to overturn an election.
Molly Beck can be reached at molly.beck@jrn.com.
Wisconsin
NCAA women’s hockey power rankings: Wisconsin overpowers Ohio State
Wroblewski on Abbey Murphy’s game
After their win against Canada in Game 1 of the rivalry series, Coach Wroblewski talks about Abbey Murphy’s game after having a hat trick.
Sports Seriously
The University of Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team might have the best goaltender, best defender and best offensive depth in the nation right now. They proved it this weekend, sweeping their series against No. 2 Ohio State.
Princeton was the biggest climber in this week’s NCAA women’s hockey power rankings, finding its way into the top 10 after beating a pair of nationally ranked programs, while Cornell dropped both of its games.
North America’s top players will head to Edmonton, Alberta, this week for the Canadian leg of the Rivalry Series, while NCAA players from Finland, Sweden, Switzerland and Czechia are headed overseas to compete in the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour, their last chance to perform internationally ahead of the 2026 Olympics in February.
Here are the top 10 NCAA women’s hockey programs this week.
Women’s college hockey power rankings
1. University of Wisconsin (WCHA)
After sweeping Ohio State 2-1 and 6-1, Wisconsin entrenched its claim to the top spot in the nation. Ava McNaughton stopped 60 of 62 shots and was perhaps the biggest difference between the teams. Right now, the only thing between Wisconsin and back-to-back titles is their ability to weather the Olympics, where as many as six members of their lineup will be in action.
2. Ohio State (WCHA)
Ohio State had its chance against No. 1 Wisconsin. The Buckeyes weren’t significantly outshot or outplayed but still got swept. Joy Dunne and Hilda Svensson, November’s WCHA forward and rookie of the month, respectively, were held without a goal. It was Ohio State’s only chance to show it can beat Wisconsin best-on-best, as the next time the teams face off in early February, they will be without their Olympians.
3. University of Minnesota (WCHA)
Whether it was Abbey Murphy, Josefin Bouveng, Sydney Morrow or Jamie Nelson, Minnesota’s seniors made the difference in a pair of conference wins over St. Thomas. Bouveng is tied with Wisconsin’s Caroline Harvey for the longest point streak in the nation, hitting the scoresheet in 17 consecutive games, while Murphy set a program record, scoring her 26th career game-winning goal.
4. University of Minnesota-Duluth (WCHA)
Eve Gascon stopped 50 of 51 shots she faced for the Bulldogs, which beat Bemidji State 4-1 and 4-0. Gascon’s 20-save shutout was her fourth of the season. She had something to prove after being left off Canada’s Rivalry Series roster for December. Offensively, Minnesota-Duluth has work to do after being outshot by Bemidji State in the first game of their series, but they looked much stronger in the second.
5. Penn State (Atlantic Hockey America)
Penn State doesn’t play again until Dec. 30, but their next three games will define their season, playing Cornell and a series against Ohio State. The Nittany Lions don’t face the same skill level in Atlantic Hockey America, so these upcoming games will be an important test ahead of the national tournament, which they’ll host at Pegula Ice Arena from March 20 to 22.
6. Northeastern (Hockey East)
It was an emotional weekend as Northeastern played its final game at the historic Matthews Arena. Captain Lily Shannon was Hockey East’s player of the month in November. Jules Constantinople was the top defender and forward Stryker Zablocki was the top rookie in November as well. They carried a hot streak over into this weekend’s series sweep of Boston College, helping lead the way for the Huskies.
7. Quinnipiac (ECAC)
After shutting out Cornell 3-0, the Bobcats lost 2-1 in overtime to Colgate in an upset. The Bobcats can find their way out of the ECAC logjam if they can consistently produce secondary offense. The team relies too heavily on Kahlen Lamarche as the primary goal-scorer. Right now, their best threats behind Lamarche are often defenders Makayla Watson and Zoe Uens.
8. Cornell (ECAC)
Cornell fell 3-0 to Quinnipiac and 3-2 to Princeton. Annelies Bergmann looked human in net, allowing three goals on 18 shots in both games. Cornell entered the weekend second in the nation in goals-against average at 1.64. That number rose this weekend, and after Cornell losses to Vermont, Syracuse and Union last month, teams believe they can beat the Big Red on any given night.
9. Connecticut (Hockey East)
UConn continues to quietly put together wins, including going 1-for-2 against Boston University this past weekend. They tied the first game but lost in a shootout. Scoring continues to be their challenge as some of their top players, including Claire Murdoch and Julia Pellerin, have yet to find their way this season. Tia Chan remains Connecticut’s biggest asset in net.
10. Princeton (ECAC)
Beating Colgate and Cornell this week, Princeton’s leaders were Mackenzie Alexander and 2026 PWHL Draft prospect Issy Wunder. It often takes Ivy League schools longer to hit their stride in NCAA women’s hockey as they start their season a month later than the rest of the nation. Princeton may still be scratching the surface of its potential this season.
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