Halftime roundup

There was no shortage of excitement in the half's final 1:30.

After holding Minny to a three-and-out with 57 seconds to play, UM's Justin Kucek boomed a 51-yard punt only to see it returned by Wisconsin punt returner, and New Hope, Minn. native, David Gilreath 56 yards.

Backup quarterback Allen Evridge then made an appearance on UW's final series, a three-and-out, before Taylor Mehlhaff missed his second field goal of the game. Mehlhaff clanked a 46-yard try off the right upright.

A couple other observations:

- No word on why Donovan didn't come out for the team's final offensive series. The senior did dive head-first with his hands extended over his head, into the endzone for UW's touchdown, perhaps re-injuring the hand on the play. When we get more news I'll let you know.

- On Shane Carter's second-quarter interception, junior cornerback Jack Ikegwuonu was not on the field. That left UW with Minneapolis native Kim Royston, Josh Nettles, Ben Strickland and Aaron Henry as the dime cornerbacks in the package.

- Zach Brown just keeps getting better and better the more he sees the ball. The freshman is averaging 8.2 yards per carry after the first half, and has aleady amassed 106 yards rushing. He also displayed some shiftiness on his 64-yard run, faking out a pair of Minnesota would-be tacklers on the run.

- Minnesota quarterback Adam Weber has rushed for 74 yards on the day, the second-most yards by a quarterback against Wisconsin this season. Illinois' Juice Williams ran for 92 in a 26-31 loss for Wisconsin.

- Wisconsin has struggled to find a rhythm in the passing game, completing only three of nine attmepts. All three completions have gone to junior tight end Travis Beckum for 43 yards.
-Adam Parks