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Wisconsin football’s glimpses of progress don’t last against loaded Indiana Hoosiers squad

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Wisconsin football’s glimpses of progress don’t last against loaded Indiana Hoosiers squad


BLOOMINGTON, IND. – Given the Wisconsin football team’s résumé, a win would have been a lot to expect.

Indiana is the No. 2-ranked team in the country for a reason. The Hoosiers are getting outstanding quarterback play, have potential NFL talent on the offenisve line and at receiver and have studs at each level of the defense.

Indiana is headed to the College Football Playoff. The Badgers are still finding their way.

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So one week after getting its first Big Ten win of the season, did UW show progress in its 31-7 loss to Indiana on Saturday, Nov. 15?

In answering that question, consider:

  • Indiana’s 10-7 halftime lead equaled its second-closest first half of the season. It was tied with Iowa and led Oregon by 3 points.
  • The Badgers’ five sacks Saturday were the most allowed by Indiana this season. Wisconsin’s seven tackles for a loss was the second-highest total for a Hoosiers’ opponent.

Of course the Badgers need much more to become a consistent winner, but what they showed Saturday was more in line with what we saw from the team in its two previous games against Oregon and Washington than what it delivered against Iowa, Ohio State and Maryland.

The challenge Saturday was maintaining that standard of play for 60 minutes against a team that ranks top six nationally in total offense and defense.

“I think the first half you saw us execute a majority of the half, and I think that wasn’t the case in the second half,” said graduate outside linebacker Darryl Peterson, who had a career-high 2½ sacks.  “Obviously, the last two games, we’ve got to try to put together four quarters of execution, all three phases.” 

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Famililar struggles haunt Badgers

Despite the spirited start, Wisconsin’s Achilles heel came back to trip it.

It gained just 23 yards in the second half, and its 168 total yards for the game was its second-lowest total of the season behind the 144 it gained against No. 1 Ohio State.

Injuries played a role in those struggles. Running back Gideon Ituka, a spark for the run game the previous two games, was carted off the field and taken to the hospital after a hard hit in the third quarter and center Davis Heinzen, who made his third straight start, didn’t finish the game due to an ankle injury.

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Meanwhile, the defense didn’t force a turnover for the sixth game this season and was carved up by IU quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who connected on 22 of 24 throws for 299 yards. Big plays were huge as he gained 166 of those yards on just five completions.

His opposite number, Wisconsin freshman Carter Smith, completed nine of 15 passes for 98 yards and one touchdown.

“It’s a tale of two halves,”  Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell said. “In the first half, to be honest with you, that’s kind of the way you’d draw it up for us, methodically doing some things, moving the football, taking care of the football, eliminating big plays other than one defensively.

“I think that was the idea of the way we want to be able to play right now and the complementary idea of what football’s got to look like for us.”

The ups and downs of Carter Smith’s first start

Smith was given a looser rein in his second game and was given the opportunity to make more plays downfield.

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The coaches showed him great trust in calling what proved to be Wisconsin’s biggest play of the day, a 45-yard touchdown pass to tight end Lance Mason on a fourth-and-1 play.

That score tied the game, 7-7, with 3 minutes 42 seconds to go in the first half, but in the second half Smith turned it over twice. The crucial one was his fumble at the UW 21 that almost instantly led to a Hoosiers touchdown that pushed their lead to 24-7. Two of Indiana’s three second-half touchdowns came off Smith turnovers.

The Badgers tried to take some chances in the second half. They just didn’t work out.

“To think that you’re going to methodically drive 12, 13 plays down the field on a really, really good football team, it’s not (realistic) …” Fickell said. “We’ve got to be able to take some more shots. We’ve got to give him some more opportunities. We’ve got to turn him loose a little bit more, and unfortunately, you know, it didn’t work well for us.”

Smith entered the game during the second series against Washington but didn’t get starter snaps in practice that week. Heading into the Indiana game, he received more of those reps in practice.

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He also had more put on his plate.

“That’s something that comes with playing quarterback,” Smith said about the added workload. “So it’s something I need to get better with is having a lot on my plate and being able to handle it all.”

Two games to go, much to accomplish

The loss guarantees Wisconsin (3-7, 1-6) its second straight losing season, but the team has two games remaining.

Next Illinois (7-3, 4-3) comes to Camp Randall on Nov. 22; then UW plays at Minnesota (6-4, 4-3) on Nov. 29.

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“We got to keep pushing, and we’re going to find out a hell of a lot about everybody that’s in this program, whether they’re seniors that have two guaranteed opportunities to play the game of football left, or young guys,” Fickell said. “Everything has got to be evaluated, and we’ve got to grow.”



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8-year-old dies in hospital after icy Wisconsin crash

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8-year-old dies in hospital after icy Wisconsin crash


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:

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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. 

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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. 

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This is the 10th traffic fatality in St. Croix County. 

What we don’t know:

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The current condition of the woman is unknown. 

The Source: A press release from St. Croix County Sheriff’s Office.

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Judge refuses call from Trump’s former Wisconsin lawyer to step away from fake elector case

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Judge refuses call from Trump’s former Wisconsin lawyer to step away from fake elector case


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  • A Wisconsin judge has denied a request from former Trump attorney Jim Troupis to step down from his felony forgery case.
  • Troupis, along with Kenneth Chesebro and Mike Roman, faces felony charges for his alleged role in the 2020 fake elector scheme.
  • The charges stem from an alleged attempt to create and deliver false elector paperwork claiming Donald Trump won Wisconsin.

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.



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NCAA women’s hockey power rankings: Wisconsin overpowers Ohio State

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NCAA women’s hockey power rankings: Wisconsin overpowers Ohio State


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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.

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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.

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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.

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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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