Named after the Dells of the Wisconsin River, Wisconsin Dells is a metropolis situated within the southern-central a part of the state. As the principle vacationer vacation spot, it’s popularly often called The Dells and is immensely full of quite a few leisure facilities and world-class waterparks that embody; Mt. Olympus Water Park, Mirror Lake State Park, and Noah’s Ark Water Park. The realm was fashioned after the Wisconsin lake broke by, resulting in the formation of gorgeous surroundings; Wisconsin Dells. Additionally, you will get pleasure from its scenic mountain climbing trails, wineries, and delightful lakes. Right here, we’ve compiled a easy listing of the 20 greatest and most enjoyable issues to do in Wisconsin Dells.
20. Go to Dells Mining Firm
Are you a fan of literal treasure hunts or discovering gems? Then you need to make your strategy to Dells Mining Co. The corporate supplies you with the fun of combing by basins of sand seeking valuable stones akin to agates, sapphires, garnets, amethysts, tourmaline, rubies, and blue topaz, and emeralds. The corporate’s employees may also educate you on the varied gems and rocks you could discover.
19. Go to Timbavati Wildlife Park
In keeping with Wisdells, Timbavati Wildlife Park is a family-fun animal park that was established centuries in the past. It’s residence to about seventy totally different species of wildlife, summing as much as 350 animal species. Along with getting up shut with the park’s fauna, you’ll get to get pleasure from a journey on the Safari Prepare. Right here, you can be snug exploring the park’s totally different habitats and spot animals like monkeys, giraffes, kudus, kangaroos, and plenty of others. You may also go to the animal nursery within the park, the place they take care of child animals and endangered species.
18. Expertise the Riverside and Nice Northern Railway
The family-friendly locomotives museum was established again in 1990. It preserves and showcases varied locomotives that had been manufactured between the years 1950 to 1980. Right here, you’ll get to get pleasure from useful rides on steam trains. The railway runs over the course of about 3 miles by woodlands, faces, and canyons over a 15-gauge railway. This museum additionally options some historic artifacts and quite a few trains to discover. Moreover, entry to this museum is free, however you’ll have to pay for the practice rides.
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17. Go to Knuckleheads Trampoline and Indoor Amusement Park
Are you in search of enjoyable bodily actions and pleasure? Then, you need to go to Knuckleheads Trampoline and Indoor Amusement Park. The park is an exciting vacationer attraction with all types of enjoyable video games and actions to get pleasure from with your loved ones. Among the many actions you would strive embody mountain climbing, basketball video games, go-karts, digital actuality video games, and plenty of others. There’s additionally a restaurant throughout the park the place you possibly can get pleasure from your favourite drinks and snacks.
16. Store at Nation Bumpkin Farm Market
Nation Bumpkin Farm Market is likely one of the family-fun areas in Wisconsin Dells. It is a family-owned and operated market that was opened again in 1997 with the principle objective of promoting domestically grown contemporary fruit and veggies. Nation Bumpkin Farm Market supplies you with the chance to discover the gardens and choose the obtainable fruits. There are additionally some greenhouses throughout the market the place multiple thousand flower baskets and pots are grown yearly.
15. Cease on the Wilderness Resort
The Wilderness Resort is the biggest waterpark resort in America; thus, some of the most well-liked vacationer locations in Wisconsin Dells. In keeping with Journey US Information, Wilderness resort has a complete of eight waterparks, with 4 situated open air and the opposite 4 indoors. One of many indoor water parks you possibly can go to is the Klondike Kavern Indoor Waterpark which boasts a 400-foot Lazy River, physique slides, and a wide selection of video games to get pleasure from with your loved ones. One other indoor waterpark is the 70,000-square toes Wild WaterDome which acquired its title for the dome-shaped skylight. This park accommodates America’s largest wave pool, creating monumental five-foot waves.
14. Go to Kalahari Waterpark
Kalahari Waterpark is the most important indoor waterpark within the state of Wisconsin. Measuring about 125,000 sq. toes, it is likely one of the greatest areas to get pleasure from your favourite waterpark experiences and discover the gorgeous sceneries the state has to supply. At Kalahari Waterpark, you possibly can check out the Zig Zag Zebra waterslide, lazy river raft, a wave pool, and several other African-themed water rides. Because the park is linked to the Kalahari Resort and Conference Heart, some outside water parks are situated close by. You may also take a look at the park’s arcade video games, bumper automobile rides, and loads of digital actuality experiences.
13. Check out Dells Boat Excursions
Because the 1850s, boat excursions have at all times been thought of a enjoyable and well-liked characteristic of Wisconsin Dells. Right now, boat excursions are one of many ultimate methods to discover the town, particularly the gorge that extends for five miles and is bordered by sandstone. In keeping with Greatwolf, the gorge of the town was fashioned by glaciers and is over 500 million years previous. Dells Boat Excursions includes two totally different excursions: the Decrease Dells Boat Excursions and the Higher Dells Boat Excursions. Each of those excursions will offer you an exciting expertise, however the Higher Dells tour is usually most well-liked on account of its extra lovely views and affords some of the thrilling actions to check out in Wisconsin Dells; the Witches Gulch tour.
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12. Watch superb performances at Rick Wilcox Magic Theater
Are you trying to get pleasure from a novel type of leisure? Then, you need to go to the Rick Wilcox Magic Theater. This theater is best-known for its grand phantasm reveals which can be the right mix of magic, comedy, and excellent efficiency. It’s a thrilling 90-minute expertise run by the married couple Susan and Rick Wilcox. Since its institution again in 1999, the Rick Wilcox Magic Theater continuously updates its present performances with new methods and thrilling content material, guaranteeing the theater’s performs stay related.
11. Cease at H.H. Bennett Studio
Are you a historic fanatic? Then you need to make your strategy to the H.H Bennett Studio. It is likely one of the oldest working companies in Wisconsin Dells because it was opened by a Canadian-born photographer in 1875. The Bennett Studio is listed on the Nationwide Register of Historic Locations and is at the moment owned by the Wisconsin Historic Society. Along with studying extra in regards to the pictures practices used within the nineteenth century, you possibly can ask to have your image taken utilizing the studio’s real, old style moist plate cameras.
10. Go to Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park
Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park are one of many well-liked water-themed vacationer locations in Wisconsin Dells. Right here, you’ll get to get pleasure from their outside waterpark, theme park, indoor waterpark, and about 44 waterslides, together with the spectacular Apollo’s Swing, which is roughly 100 toes tall. The theme park boasts seven go-kart programs, arcade video games, and rollercoasters. Nonetheless, your keep on the Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park will not be full with out making an attempt out Hades 360, which contains a 360-degree roll and a 65-degree drop.
9. Check out the Misplaced Canyon Excursions
Misplaced Canyon Excursions permits you to discover a few of the greatest Wisconsin Dells sights, such because the Misplaced Canyon and different superb sceneries the state affords. In keeping with Busy Vacationer, Misplaced Canyon Excursions is a family-operated and owned firm that was opened again in 1956. Every of their excursions takes you from Lake Delton’s south shore, by the Canyon, after which again out. The Misplaced Canyon is the longest and deepest Canyon in Wisconsin. The steep cliffs and tightly packed areas usually make it tough to discover the Canyon your self. Thus, the excursions characteristic horse and carriage rides as a way to simply view these superb sceneries. Nonetheless, Misplaced Canyon Excursions are solely obtainable from mid-April to the tip of October.
8. Watch performs at The Palace Theater within the Dells
The Palace Theater within the Dells is likely one of the important leisure locations in Wisconsin Dells. This centrally-positioned theater permits you to get pleasure from an exciting combine of recent, household enjoyable, and basic performances. A number of the favourite performances on the Palace Theater embody; Alice in Wonderland, The Musical, Broadway smash hits, Magnificence and the Beast, Little Mermaid, and plenty of others. Lastly, the theater often has common play choices which can be rotated all year long to make sure the viewers is totally entertained.
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7. Get your thoughts blown away at Ripley’s Imagine It or Not Auditorium
The title “Ripley’s Imagine It or Not” is a widely known title throughout the globe, making it among the finest areas to go to in Wisconsin Dells. This iconic auditorium boasts eleven distinctive galleries on all three flooring, containing greater than 200 weird artifacts akin to shrunken heads, a two-headed sheep, complicated puzzles, and perplexing illusions. Moreover, you may as well check out extra in-depth mystical experiences, akin to a magical quest or a hunt looking for hidden gadgets.
6. Check out the Wizard Quest
Are you a fan of nerdy adventures? Then you need to check out Wizard Quest. Wizard Quest is likely one of the important vacationer sights in Wisconsin Dells. Measuring 13,000 sq. toes, that is the right location to get pleasure from pure fantasy and observe quite a few mind-blowing actions. At Wizard Quest, you’ll get to choose up a magic wand and use its “magical powers” to make your approach by fantastical creatures and eccentric constructions. The primary objective is to launch 4 elemental wizards by navigating by hid traps, passageways, puzzling rooms, and halls of mirrors.
5. Expertise the Wisconsin Dells Riverwalk
In keeping with Vacationidea, the Wisconsin Dells Riverwalk is likely one of the free-things-to-do in Wisconsin Dells. The Wisconsin Dells is a public leisure house that may be very calming and stress-free. Extending for a few quarter of a mile, the Riverwalk is marked by panoramic river views, bluffs of sandstone, and a backdrop of verdant forest. As you stroll on this scenic paved path, you’ll get to view different lovely public areas akin to park benches, tables for video games, and inexperienced fields. Lastly, that is the right location to calm your nerves after a day stuffed with enjoyable actions.
4. Check out the Bigfoot Zipline Excursions
Bigfoot Zipline Excursions is likely one of the enjoyable actions you possibly can check out whereas in Wisconsin Dells. Every tour often takes about two and a half hours, the place you journey by seven totally different zip strains. Right here, you’ll get to get pleasure from a spectacular view of the town’s lakes and expansive forests. Zipline speeds can attain as much as 40mph, and their lengths can range from 462 toes to 1,400 toes. Moreover, Zipline Excursions affords Bigfoot Ropes Course, which is a big park incorporating greater than 80 difficult actions.
3. Go to the Christmas Mountain Village
The 1,200-acre Christmas Mountain Village is listed as the perfect ski and golf resort in Wisconsin Dells. Moreover, simply because the title suggests, it’s the excellent location to spend the winter with its log cabins, villas, log cabins, townhouses, and plenty of different rooms obtainable for hire. In keeping with Dells, Christmas Mountain Village is popularly identified for its 27-hole golf course and loads of alternatives for snowshoeing and cross-country snowboarding, tenting, and indoor and outside swimming.
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2. Discover the Tommy Bartlett Exploratory
Are you a fan of science and new scientific discoveries? Then, you need to go to the Tommy Bartlett Exploratory. It options greater than 175 very interactive actions and up-to-date displays that showcase the wonders of science and trendy know-how.
1. Swim at Noah’s Ark Waterpark
Noah’s Ark Waterpark is likely one of the high ten waterparks in Wisconsin Dells. With greater than 70 acres of house, it’s the greatest waterpark in America. Noah’s Ark Waterpark options greater than 51 water slides, two massive wave swimming pools, 4 adrenaline-pumping waterslides, 51 water slides, and a ten-story waterfall drop. Nonetheless, the facilities featured within the park are greatest suited to folks of all ages.
Wisconsin football’s recruiting performance is far better than the current on-field product, to say the least.
Luke Fickell’s team has now lost four straight games after Saturday’s 44-25 defeat at Nebraska. It is just 5-6 on the season and 3-5 in Big Ten play, desperately needing a season-closing victory over Minnesota to clinch bowl eligibility.
There is more context behind that on-field performance, including the recent firing of offensive coordinator Phil Longo and historic blowout losses to rivals Iowa and Nebraska sandwiching hard-fought losses to top-ranked teams. That context doesn’t help the general trend of poor play.
But for those still optimistic about the Badgers’ future under Luke Fickell, the biggest calling card is his recruiting performance.
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Wisconsin made headlines on Sunday when it landed a commitment from four-star class of 2025 quarterback Carter Smith. Smith is ranked as 247Sports’ No. 15 quarterback in the class and No. 164 overall player. Beating Florida State for his commitment was a statement for Fickell and his staff — even doing so after firing Longo just seven days earlier.
The addition of Smith brings Wisconsin’s class of 2025 to 25 total commitments — eight of which coming from blue-chip players. Notably, it rose the group four spots up to No. 21 in 247Sports’ national rankings.
The Badgers now boast the eighth-highest-rated class in the Big Ten, trailing just Ohio State (No. 2 overall), Oregon (No. 8), Michigan (No. 9), USC (No. 11), Penn State (No. 15), Washington (No. 18) and Nebraska (No. 20). The No. 21 ranking is an impressive follow-up after Luke Fickell finished the 2024 class with 247Sports’ No. 25 overall class and a Blue-Chip Ratio of 50%.
Smith’s addition continues a growing debate about how to weigh Wisconsin’s on-field struggles with its recruiting success. In reality, the 2025 football season will be somewhat defined by the performance of the 2024 recruiting class and another crop of transfers. If that strong recruiting doesn’t lead to improved on-field play, the clock may start ticking on his tenure.
Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. – The news was positive every time Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard got the analytical report from video coordinator A.J. Van Handel, even though the results on the court were not. Despite some early flaws guarding back cuts and allowing dribble penetration, the Badgers were holding Pittsburgh under a point per possession. He just needed Wisconsin to take and make some better shots.
That, and John Tonje hoisting the Badgers on his back and carrying them over the finish line.
The resilience, toughness, and guts of the No.19 Wisconsin was on full display in front of a packed Colonial Hall at the Greenbrier Resort, as the Badgers got 33 points from Tonje and sound offensive execution in the second half to erase a 14-pint deficit in an 81-75 victory over Pittsburgh.
It’s the third November championship for Wisconsin (7-0) in the past four seasons and a victory that could serve as a springboard in the coming weeks, not to mention a nice thing to show the selection committee in four months.
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Here are my takeaways from the foothills of the Alleghany Mountains.
Tonje Led The Second Half Charge
Tonje said that he hopes to live in Madison when he’s retired from playing basketball. At the rate he’s going, he might have to come back anyway for his jersey retirement.
Tonje was the hero again for Wisconsin and treated as such, going into the crowd to celebrate with the vocal fan base that made the trip and mobbed by his teammates while waiting to do his postgame television interview. It was the only time anybody got the better of him after halftime.
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Shaking off a 2-for-8 start, Tonje was 9-for-11 in the second half. He was 6-for-6 from the line, relentlessly going inside and getting rewarded because Pittsburgh kept reaching. Knowing the primary defenders on him were starting to rack up fouls, and that the Panthers haven’t shown to be a particularly deep team to this point, Tonje kept his head down and kept attacking.
“I was trying to be aggressive from the start,” said Tonje, who made all nine of his two-point shots in the second half, most coming at the rim or in the paint. “I didn’t shoot the ball well early, but I just kept with it. My coaches and teammates believed in me. I stayed with it and did everything I can in my power to get the win.”
After falling into the trap of taking quick shots or long-range jumpers, a problem that plagued the Badgers last season, Wisconsin found the gaps in Pittsburgh defense. UW scored 54 points in the second half, registered points on 83.3 percent of its possessions, and averaged a robust 1.8 points per possession.
“I don’t think we started the second half with the type of force that’s necessary,” Pittsburgh coach Jeff Capel said. “We allowed them to climb back into the game and really get into a great rhythm offensively, and then they just became really tough to guard … Their physicality wore us down.”
Tonje scored 25 of the second-half points but he had help. Kamari McGee scored eight of his 10 points in the last half and hit all three of his shots, including a pair of clutch three-pointers that were timely in the final six-plus minutes, one giving UW the lead and another extended it to four with 2:54 to go.
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“We kept at it,” said John Blackwell (14 points). “We kept getting to the rim (and) stayed aggressive. Obviously, our shots weren’t falling in the first half, but we didn’t quit. We told ourselves at halftime just keep going. The shots are going to fall. We trusted each other.
“JT did his thing by getting to the rim, doing what he do best.”
Named the tournament’s most valuable player, Tonje averaged 24.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game over UW’s two wins.
“He just drives and throws his body around,” Capel said of Tonje, one of only six players nationally to have two 30-point games this season. “We weren’t able to sustain the discipline required to guard someone like that. You can’t reach. He does a really good job of getting his body into yours. He’s really strong with the ball. He exposes it. You think you can swipe, and he gets a great whistle, and he’s earned that because it’s consistent.”
Wisconsin Is Handling Top Guard Play
McGee said Friday that the close call against UTRGV Monday was not a wake-up call for the Badgers, only that it emphasized the need to be better polished in defensive areas. Call it what you want, but the Badgers’ defense took a major step in slowing down guard play in West Virginia.
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Pittsburgh’s backcourt of Ishmael Leggett and Jaland Lowe averaged 33.2 points, 12.4 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 4.5 steals per game. They combined for 43 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists, and eight steals in Friday’s win over LSU. They managed 33 points on 32 shots.
“I just tried to match his energy,” Blackwell said of guarding Leggett, who finished 6-for-15 and 0-for-4 from three. “I know he picked up some quick fouls and he sat. All I can do is try to match his energy, because he’s a great player.”
The Badgers also took away Lowe’s ability to cleanly pass the ball. He finished with five assists but committed four turnovers.
“If we can guard ball screens as much as possible two on two and not have to send quite as much help, we knew we were going to have to plug the paint,” Gard said of the plan for Lowe.“Try to force him into some mid-range stuff. I didn’t think we were good at it early. He got loose on us, pinched us off, and got a couple lobs to Corhen, but I thought we got better with the back side of bumping the roller and plugging the lane. We forced him into some tougher shots.”
Wisconsin caught a break when Damian Dunn (13.0 ppg, .526 3FG) rolled his ankle and injured his hand two minutes into the game and didn’t return. Freshman guard Brandin Cummings replaced him and managed only two points.
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With how poorly Wisconsin’s offense was in the first half (36.7 percent, .794 points per possession), the Badgers leaning into their defense was critical.
“We have to give all credit to the coaches,” Blackwell said. “They prepared us well to know what their tendencies are, what they like to do. We just trust each other. Our bigs got our back if they get past us with good wall ups. We just trust our technique.”
Frustrating opposing guards has become a common theme.Arizona preseason All-American Caleb Love generated more technical fouls than made three-pointers against UW’s guards. He finished 2-for-13 from the floor and scored six points before fouling out
In Friday’s semifinals against UCF, which possessed a guard trio of Jordan Ivy-Curry, Keyshawn Hall, and Darius Johnson that scored 62.4 percent of its points, the Badgers’ ability to challenge them with movement and spacing held the group to 9-for-36 from the floor.
Wisconsin Showed Growth vs Physical Rebounders
The Panthers have proven to be one of the better rebounding teams in the country in the season’s first month. Having won the rebounding battle in five of its first six games, Pitt wasaveraging 41.2 rebounds per game, was 21st nationally in defensive rebounds (30.83) and had four players averaging at least 6.0 rebounds per game.
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They took the Badgers to task in the first half. Finishing the first half plus-four on the glass, Pitt’s first 11 points were all on actions toward the rim, mostly on back cuts behind UW’s defense, dribble actions where a Pitt player hit the cutter, or a guard attacking the paint to hit an open pull-up jumper.
Even after reserve forward Zack Austin switched things up with a three-pointer, Pittsburgh went right back to the post with an alley-oop and multiple driving layups. The 6-10 Cameron Corhen was the biggest benefactor of UW’s lapse defense, as the 68.0 percent FG shooter had 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting in the opening half.
Wisconsin 2-for-10 to start and was largely absent in the glass when shots went up. UW started 0-for-5 from the perimeter and most attempts didn’t have a red jersey close to the rim. UW’s first offensive rebound came at the 10:54 mark, but the possession ended with Blackwell airballing a three-pointer with the shot clock about to expire, a possession that didn’t include a post touch.
Wisconsin was averaging .533 points on its first 15 possessions. UW raised it modestly at halftime because Blackwell, McGee, Tonje, and Nolan Winter (11 points) started getting to the rim and converting.
The inability to match a team’s frontcourt physicality has been an underlining theme when the Badgers have faced Power-Four schools. Arizona outrebounded UW, 52-28, including 24-2 on the offensive glass, and gave up 13 boards to forward Tobe Awaka.
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UCF wasn’t nearly as big as Arizona, but the Knights still outrebounded Wisconsin, 41-39, with all 11 players getting at least one offensive rebound.
Things flipped in the second half. Senior Steven Crowl (6 points, season-high 9 rebounds, 3 assists) helped draw two quick fouls on Corhen, sending him to the bench for five-and-a-half minutes of the second half. He attempted only two shots in the final 12:51 after he returned.
With Corhen out and Guillermo Diaz Graham at the five, Wisconsin’s low-post offense ran more efficiently by creatingmore lanes for Tonje to attack and more space to attack the glass. After getting only two offensive rebounds in the first half, the Badgers had nine in the second half that led to 11 second-chance points.
“Once we got rolling in the second half we went to him quite a bit,” Gard said on Crowl. “I liked his physicality on Corhen. That’s one thing I felt Steve’s advantage was on Corhen on both ends of the floor was he could be physical. Corhen is a really good player but a little lighter than Steve. To be able to keep a big body on Corhen, and when we got him in foul trouble, we were able to go at the rim a little bit more with everybody else.”
Lengthy Delays
The championship game was scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. eastern, roughly 30 minutes following the conclusion of the third-place game between LSU and UCF. The Knights’ collapse made the evening a waiting game.
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UCF led by 20 in the first half, 18 with 12:57 left, and 14 with 8:31 to go, but ended up losing, 106-102, in triple overtime.
When the teams finally took the court, went through introductions, and were ready to start, one of the electronic game-and-shot clocks above the basket shorted out. Unable to restart the system, or find a long enough extension cord, officials agreed to shut off the working shot clock to even the playing field.
Throw in the jump ball needing to be done twice after a Pitt player jumped the gun, the game didn’t officially start until 6:43 local time, an hour, 13 minutes late.
That delayed doesn’t account for the two brief stoppages in play in the second half when the bank of lights that illuminated center court kept flickering on and off.
“I thought we handled all the adversity well,” Capel said. “What we didn’t handle was Tonje.”
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By The Numbers
6 – Wisconsin turned the ball over just six times, including only two in the second half. Averaging 9.4 turnovers per game, Wisconsin has had fewer than 10 turnovers in four games.
17.5 – The Badgers held Pittsburgh to 5-for-23 (21.7) from three-point range and held their two Power-Four Conference opponents to 7-for-40 (17.5) on threes.
30 – After scoring just eight points in the first 10 minutes, the Badgers scored 73 in the final 30 minutes.
60 – Tonje has made 60 free throws this season to lead all Division 1 players. His 63 attempts are tops in the Big Ten and tied for fourth nationally. He’s the first UW player since Brad Davison (2017-18) to have made at least 10 free throws in three games.
300 – Gard coached his 300th game on Sunday, the fourth-most games of any coach in Wisconsin history. He improved his record to 193-107 (.643) overall and 72-22 (.766) in regular season nonconference games.
The Nebraska football team got their sixth win on Saturday night, clinching bowl eligibility for the first time since 2016. They did so by beating Wisconsin for the first time since 2012. The jubilation, relief, and joy could be felt far and wide across the windswept plains. The win resets the entire narrative of year 2 under Matt Rhule, and gives the Huskers a chance at their first winning record in eight years.
We cover it all in the topline takeaways.
CHEERS TO THAT
FINALLY!!! They finally did it. Finally beat Wisconsin. Finally clinched a bowl game. Finally got over the hump, after so much heartbreak and so many close losses over the last eight years. You could feel the collective sigh of relief across the entire fan base, combined with the elation that came with the moment. It felt like we were exorcizing so many demons from the last decade of Nebraska football. Fans stormed the field. Social media went nuts. Friends and family members shared in the moment as if the Berlin wall had just come down. I’m not exaggerating or lying when I say, I actually cried.
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It’s a sign of how low the program has fallen that simply getting to bowl eligibility elicited such a response from the fan base, but that’s where we are. I’m glad Matt Rhule addressed that point in the post game press conference. I loved how he made the point that the Huskers are building something bigger, and this will be the only time they celebrate six wins. But they had to get this done first. Before you can win the conference, before you can get to the college football playoff, before you can dream bigger dreams, you have to get back to a bowl game. Mission accomplished.
Dana Holgorsen’s Offense. I don’t care that this is not your traditional, stifling Wisconsin defense. The Badgers held #1 Oregon to 16 points just one week ago. And the Nebraska offense had their way with that defense, all game long. Dylan Raiola looked like the five star quarterback we’ve been waiting for. Emmett Johnson ran like a bat out of hell, leading the team in both rushing yards (113) and receiving yards (85). Jacorey Barney did what he’s been doing all season long, making plays and making defenders miss. Dante Dowdell ran like the Big Ten bruiser we saw earlier in the season. The offensive line had arguably their best game of this decade.
Huge props to Rhule for making the bold decision to bring Holgorsen in as the offensive coordinator with just three games to go. Some panned the decision as desperate, and there was no guarantee it would work. He’s had a clear and immediate impact on this offense. Now Nebraska needs to do whatever is necessary to keep him in Lincoln for next season (and hopefully, beyond).
Husker Nation. Hats off to you, fellow Common Fans. Hats off to all of us. Nebraska has had one winning season and two bowl games since 2015. The team has suffered through too many painful, inexplicable, gut punch losses to count. Our team, still in the top ten in all-time wins, has had one of the worst stretches of football in its long, glorious history. And we never left. We kept showing up, kept filling up that beautiful stadium, kept believing things would turn around. Nebraska football truly has the greatest fan base in all of sports. Hopefully, this is just the beginning.
DIDN’T LIKE THAT
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Defensive Struggles. I contemplated not having anything in this category this week, because this is a time of celebration for all Husker fans. But it’s a bit concerning as we head into Iowa week that the Husker defense hasn’t been as dominant as we’re used to seeing over the last two weeks. USC scored 28 points on the Blackshirts, and Wisconsin scored 25. Both teams had missed or blocked field goals that would have made those totals even higher. Both teams put up over 400 yards. The defensive backfield in particular has been a concern, with opposing receivers seemingly wide open way too often. And there have been way too many missed tackles in recent games.
Hopefully, the Huskers can clean up the defensive issues for the Iowa game. The Hawkeyes are a run-heavy team, having completed only 10 out 14 passes for 76 yards in their game against Maryland this weekend. That should play to Nebraska’s strengths, but it’s Iowa, so we should assume the Blackshirts will need their absolute best possible performance in order for the Huskers to come out of there with a win.
FINAL THOUGHT
Happy Thanksgiving week, Common Fans. I’m thankful for each of you who read these columns, as well as those who listen to the Common Fan Podcast. It’s such a joy to play some small part in helping fans enjoy and engage with this thing we all love so much. I wish each of you a wonderful holiday filled with family and friends. Enjoy it, celebrate the big win over Wisconsin, and then get ready to strap in and take the fight to the Hawkeyes on Friday.
As always, GBR for LIFE.
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MORE: Iowa Football Opens as Home Favorite Over Nebraska in Black Friday Matchup
MORE: Five Big Ten Teams Remain in Associated Press, Coaches Top 25 Polls
MORE: Husker Doc Talk: Nebraska Football Is Going Bowling!
MORE: LOOK: Photos From Nebraska Football’s Badger Beatdown
MORE: Holgorsen Helps Huskers Bash the Beleaguered Badgers and Become Bowl-Bound
Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.
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