Wisconsin defeated Northwestern 23-3 on the road to improve to 5-2 on the season on Saturday.

The Wildcats’ Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium overlooks Lake Michigan, so Wisconsin strength coach Brady Collins promised his players that he’d take a dip into the lake if the Badgers were victorious.

He’s a man of his word.

Wisconsin strength coach Brady Collins promised the Badgers he would jump in Lake Michigan if they won.

He is a man of his word. pic.twitter.com/5PLZSnZG5N
— Matt Fortuna (@Matt_Fortuna) October 19, 2024

Collins promise was fufilled after the Badgers held Northwestern to 209 total yards of offense on the day while Wisconsin’s ruhsing effort went for 199 yards alone. Quarterback Braedyn Locke rushed in one of the scores while also passing for 160 more yards and another touchdown.

Tailback Tawee Walker was given the ball 23 times, totaling 126 yards — 5.5 per carry.

Leading 14-0 heading into halftime, head coach Luke Fickell wasn’t exactly pleased over his team’s efforts in the first half. He called on his offense to show out in the second half, but scored just nine points over the last two quarters. Still, he was pleased with what he saw out of his defense for giving up just one field goal during the entire afternoon.

Given that Wisconsin has averaged 47 points per game during the last two games, of course it seemed like a slow start. However, this seems to be how the Badgers have controlled the tempo in games they’ve won recently. They also led Rutgers 14-0 at half, but a four-touchdown second-half performance put any question of the outcome to bed. Meanwhile, during the win against Purdue, Wisconsin led 21-6 before piling 31 points onto that total during the final two quarters.

Looking ahead, a homestand against No. 3 Penn State looms in Week 9, which could be a monumental victory for the Badgers who still have an arguement to make for Big Ten title berth almost midway through conference play.

A win against the Nittany Lions at home next week will make the Badgers bowl eligible. Kickoff is set for Saturday, Oct. 26 live on NBC and Peacock.