Recovering Wisconsin sets sights on Hoosiers

Barry Alvarez isn't afraid to say it. He won't try to fool his team or the press by lying to them. The naked truth is, the Wisconsin coach is terrified of Hoosier junior quarterback Antwaan Randle El.\nAlvarez is not alone. If there is a way to contain Randle El, nobody has found the solution. Last week against Illinois, Randle El ran over, under and through the Illini for 209 yards and four rushing touchdowns. Randle El's 209 yards was his second 200-yard rushing effort in three games, the other coming in a win against Minnesota last month.\nEven though he feels his team has played well against the option, Alvarez is still concerned about getting a leash on Randle El.\n"We feel our team is option sound, but this option is a little bit different because of the guy running it," Alvarez said. "You can be as sound as you want and still not be able to tackle (Randle El)."\nWhat makes things more difficult in Alvarez's mind is Randle El's ability to both run with and throw the ball. Tackling Randle El has not typically been classified as an enjoyable task.\n"The scariest thing is being athletic enough to bring him down," Alvarez said. "You can't overplay the run or the pass. I've never seen a player who can dominate a game the way he has. I've just never seen anybody who's capable of doing that. He's probably just one of the most gifted athletes I've ever seen."\nBadger junior linebacker Nick Greisen, named Big Ten defensive player of the week Monday, will be a key factor in limiting Randle El and the Hoosiers' potent running game. Greisen said Wisconsin will approach Randle El as just another running back.\n"We look at him as another back," Greisen said. "He's gotten a lot better at passing, but as long as everybody takes care of their responsibility, we should be able to shut them down."\nHaving said all of this, Alvarez has reason to be encouraged based on what the Badgers did last year to Randle El and the Hoosiers. Wisconsin ambushed IU for a 59-0 win last year in Madison. Randle El was limited to 28 rushing yards on 18 carries as IU was held to 278 total yards.\n"Everybody has to have a responsibility and they have to be very disciplined to have any chance to be successful," Alvarez said. "Last year, we jumped up on them. I think they probably had to get away from their game plan."\nThe Hoosiers have not forgotten that Saturday afternoon last October. IU coach Cam Cameron said he hopes the memory of last year's embarrassment can serve as motivation.\n"I think there's some circumstances there, but the bottom line is that the score speaks for itself," Cameron said. "There's not a lot of talk about it. Just write it down. I think that says enough."\nEven though Wisconsin (6-4, 3-4 in Big Ten play) doesn't have the record or national status they had last year at this time, the Badgers are still playing well. Wisconsin's four losses have been by a total of 28 points, including three-point losses to Northwestern and Michigan.\n"I think it's very deceiving for people to think that Wisconsin isn't one of the best teams in this league," Cameron said. "They had some adversity early in the year. They seem to have gotten through that and seem to be getting back on track."\nThe Badgers did face some tough games without some of their key players. Junior cornerback Jamar Fletcher and junior running back Michael Bennett, amongst others, missed time due to suspensions stemming from a merchandise discount scandal.\n"They've got their skill people on offense playing at a high level, especially the last few weeks," Cameron said. "Defensively, they're back to playing the way they are accustomed to playing. This is an awfully, awfully, good Wisconsin ball club coming in here at this point in time."\nA key to the Badgers' recent success has been the improved health and play of sophomore quarterback Brooks Bollinger and Bennett. In the past five games, Wisconsin has averaged over 140 yards rushing and more than 208 yards through the air per contest.\nWith much of the attention on Randle El, Bollinger is ready to do what he has to.\n"Their offense has put up some big numbers this year," Bollinger said. "That means we're going to have to put some points on the board and be able to control the ball and make first downs."\nWith Bollinger handling the offense, Alvarez's defense will try to stop something that seems to be unstoppable at times. Alvarez said he can only hope.