Wisconsin
Mellusi rushes for 2 TDs and Wisconsin beats South Dakota 27-13
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Chez Mellusi’s grandfather died on Friday, but he didn’t tell Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell until the conclusion of Saturday’s game.
By that point, Mellusi had delivered a performance that would have made his grandfather proud.
Mellusi rushed for two touchdowns, Tyler Van Dyke threw for another and Wisconsin beat South Dakota 27-13. Mellusi told a few people earlier this week – but not many – about his grandfather’s situation.
“I didn’t want any sympathy,” Mellusi said. “I need to do a better job letting my guys know what I’m going through. That’s on me.”
Van Dyke completed 17 of 27 passes for 214 yards and a touchdown for the Badgers (2-0). Mellusi had 16 carries for 60 yards and Cade Yacamelli rushed for a team-high 73 yards on eight attempts.
Mellusi said that he was close to Cesare Mellusi and took the situation hard. Mellusi’s father Mario Mellusi didn’t attend Saturday’s game.
“It’s life,” Chez Mellusi said. “I know what he would’ve wanted for me is to play the best version of myself. And I have to be better. Today, I did all right. I left some things on the field, for sure.”
Fickell said that this season, in particular, Mellusi’s impact has grown within the program.
“It’s the best I’ve seen him — as a leader, as a guy that can provide some energy and provide some spark,” Fickell said. “It’s a great reminder to us, especially us that understand this landscape of college football is changing, that even the older players can truly grow.”
Cade Yacamelli rushed for a team-high 73 yards on eight attempts.
Wisconsin raced to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on a Mellusi 9-yard touchdown and a 50-yard scoring strike from Van Dyke to CJ Williams.
South Dakota (1-1) cut the lead to 17-13 in the third quarter but couldn’t get any closer.
Nathanial Vakos’ 50-yard field goal made it 20-13 late in the third period. Mellusi’s 1-yard touchdown run with 7:35 remaining put the game out of reach at 27-13.
Vakos also had a 24-yard field goal in the second period.
South Dakota’s Charles Pierre Jr. rushed for 83 yards on 12 carries and Aidan Bowman completed 12 of 23 passes for 114 yards. Keyondray James-Logan scored South Dakota’s lone touchdown with a 35-yard run early in the third quarter.
South Dakota creeped into contention in the third after a muffed punt by Wisconsin’s Vinny Anthony. But the Coyotes failed to get a touchdown and settled for Leyland’s 32-yard field goal to cut Wisconsin’s lead to 17-13.
South Dakota coach Bob Nielsen said that the Coyotes couldn’t keep up with the Badgers in the fourth quarter.
“We left a lot of points on the board,” Nielsen said. “And against a team like (Wisconsin), you can’t leave points on the board. They wore us, they leaned on us a little bit. We had one drive with the three penalties, and they did a good job of scoring late in the game to make it a two-score game.”
The takeaway
Wisconsin: The Badgers had four gains of at least 22 yards in the first half, an encouraging sign after they had no plays longer than 17 yards in their season-opening 28-14 victory over Western Michigan. The biggest plays were Williams’ 50-yard touchdown and a 32-yard catch by Anthony.
South Dakota: The Coyotes lost the game but made some big plays on defense and special teams. Nyle Dickel recovered a Wisconsin muffed punt in the third quarter. Mi’Quise Grace and Mosai Newsom got one sack each against Van Dyke.
Up next
South Dakota: At Portland State on Sept. 14.
Wisconsin: Hosts No. 4 Alabama on Sept. 14.
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde reflects on early March Madness exit
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde said the Badgers ‘thought we could do so many things’ in the NCAA Tournament before it ended abrupty with an upset loss.
Wisconsin men’s basketball has added a sharpshooting wing via the transfer portal.
Miami (Ohio) transfer Eian Elmer has signed with the Badgers, the team announced April 18. The 6-foot-7 wing will join UW with one year of eligibility remaining.
Elmer averaged a career-high 12.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 49.8% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in 2025-26. His production helped the RedHawks go 32-2 and earn an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
“We are really excited to add another excellent addition to our spring signees,” UW coach Greg Gard said in a release. “Eian brings a wealth of experience and scoring punch as a 6-7 wing. … A terrific shooter, his skillset and production fit excellently into our plan as we build out next year’s team. Throughout our evaluation process, our staff loved his size, power and skill and truly believe he will thrive in our system.”
Elmer is Wisconsin’s third transfer portal addition since the end of the 2025-26 season, joining former George Washington guard Trey Autry and former Hofstra forward Victory Onuetu. UW also added Australian guard Owen Foxwell.
The additions of Autry, Onuetu and now Elmer leave Gard’s staff with three more roster spots to fill ahead of the 2026-27 season.
The Badgers are looking to replace much of their production from a 2025-26 team that went 24-11. Nolan Winter is expected to be the team’s only returning starter after John Blackwell and Aleksas Bieliauskas entered the transfer portal and Nick Boyd and Andrew Rohde exhausted their eligibility.
MILWAUKEE – Friday’s severe storms have passed. And with that, the threat of any severe weather has also passed for the immediate future as no storms or rain are expected for several days.
However, plenty of damage remains across southeastern Wisconsin as of Saturday morning, in addition to the ongoing flooding threat.
Several area rivers are at flood stage, and there are multiple river flood warnings in effect.
FOX6 Weekend WakeUp on Saturday begins at 6 a.m.
On the scene in the morning
What we know:
Farmstead damage in Franklin
FOX6’s Hayley Spitler is in Franklin on Saturday morning, April 18, getting a daylight look at the damage from last night’s storms.
Storm damage in Caledonia
Friday’s storms left quite the mark across southern and southeastern Wisconsin, including at L and L Farms and Greenhouse in Caledonia.
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News
School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
The Source: Information in this post was compiled by the FOX6 Weather Experts.
How Aleksas Bieliauskas has grown in first season with Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard has high praise for Aleksas Bieliauskas about a month into the Lithuania native’s freshman season.
MADISON – One of Wisconsin men’s basketball’s departing transfers is headed to an SEC program with some connections to the Badgers.
Ex-UW forward Aleksas Bieliauskas has committed to South Carolina, he announced on April 17.
Bieliauskas left the Badgers after appearing in all 35 games as a freshman and making 28 starts. He averaged 4.9 points and 4.4 points in 20.2 minutes, and highlights of his freshman year included his five 3-pointers in UW’s upset over eventual national champion Michigan.
He’ll join a program with plenty of Wisconsin ties. South Carolina head coach Lamont Paris was an assistant coach at Wisconsin from 2010-17 on Bo Ryan and Greg Gard’s staffs. South Carolina assistant coach Tanner Bronson and director of video services Roman DiPasquale also are UW alumni.
Bieliauskas is the second of UW’s four departing transfers to commit to a new school. Reserve forward Jack Robison committed to North Dakota State on April 15. Starting guard John Blackwell and reserve forward Riccardo Greppi have not announced their next schools yet.
-
Michigan5 minutes agoQ&A: Jocelyn Benson on her tenure as Michigan’s secretary of state
-
Massachusetts11 minutes agoPolice shoot and kill man armed with knife in Lexington, DA says
-
Minnesota17 minutes agoBoldy, Eriksson Ek help Wild cruise past Stars in Game 1 of Western 1st Round | NHL.com
-
Mississippi23 minutes agoGeorge County High School senior killed in Highway 26 crash, MHP says
-
Missouri29 minutes ago
Missouri Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 winning numbers for April 18, 2026
-
Montana35 minutes ago
Montana Lottery Powerball, Lotto America results for April 18, 2026
-
Nebraska41 minutes agoGallery: Huskers Run-Rule No. 12 USC to Take Series
-
Nevada47 minutes agoIN RESPONSE: Cortez Masto lands bill would keep the proceeds in Nevada