Badgers assistant: WRs had separation, didn't run wrong routes vs. LSU
MADISON, Wis. -- In a week filled with miscommunications, what's one more to add to the Wisconsin football fire? This one checks in far lower on the panic level scale, but it is noteworthy nonetheless.
It involves the play of Wisconsin's wide receiver corps during the team's season opener against LSU. During the game, Badgers wide receivers accounted for five catches for 41 yards, while quarterback Tanner McEvoy completed just 8 of 24 passes. Yet it was some of those incompletions that left question marks.
Earlier this week, Badgers coach Gary Andersen suggested the receivers struggled to adjust to LSU's press coverage with its more physical defensive backs. He also noted the receivers broke off their routes on occasion, which resulted in McEvoy misfiring throws by several yards.
However, Badgers wide receivers coach Chris Beatty noted his players gained enough separation to make catches thrown their way. He also refuted the claim that any of his receivers ran the wrong routes against LSU.
"No, we were right," Beatty said. "There's conversions that have got to get made on those routes, and they didn't break those off. They were correct. That's part of the process is being on the same page and the quarterback being on the same page with the receivers and vice versa. But those guys were where they were supposed to be."
What in the name of Bucky Badger is going on?
This week, Andersen has endured public scrutiny for his handling of two separate situations involving running back Melvin Gordon and quarterback Joel Stave. Andersen initially declined to specify Gordon had sustained a hip flexor strain during Saturday's game, while Gordon said he was fine. Gordon also, apparently, was not told he would not be used much during the second half, which he later chalked up to a misunderstanding with coaches.
On Tuesday, Andersen issued a press release saying Stave had sustained an injury to his throwing shoulder and would be shut down. It came to pass later in the day that Stave was not injured and was enduring a mental block in his throwing motion. In both instances, Andersen's attempt to protect his players backfired in the public eye.
As for the plight of Wisconsin's receivers, Beatty said they made the necessary adjustments they were coached to make.
"When it's open coverage, we run a certain route," Beatty said. "When it's closed, you run a certain route. It might appear that you're breaking stuff off, but you're running the correction that needs to be made on the route. I think that's just part of repetition. The quarterbacks and the receivers have got to be on the same page and see the same things. . . .
"It's just part of growing, and you're going to have growing pains. Those guys made the right decisions. I don't want to sit here and say that we broke something off when we didn't, because we didn't. Those guys were right."
When McEvoy was asked this week about one particular throw to receiver Reggie Love that missed the mark by some 10 yards, McEvoy said it was his own fault. He also owned up to many of his other misfires, putting the responsibility on his shoulders for throwing the ball in the wrong spot.
Beatty was informed Andersen had said otherwise.
"That's OK," he said. "After the game you don't always see exactly what you think you're seeing. But, no, that wasn't the case."
Ultimately, it may not matter which players made the mistakes during Wisconsin's 28-24 loss because it matters more how they correct the errors. But the conflicting viewpoints only muddle an already choppy week for the football program.
Figaro still starting: Despite a subpar debut from true freshman Lubern Figaro at free safety, Badgers defensive coordinator Dave Aranda said he would remain the team's starter for its game against Western Illinois on Saturday.
During last week's game against LSU, Figaro was involved in two miscues that helped swing the game in the Tigers' favor. First, LSU quarterback Anthony Jennings connected with Travin Dural for an 80-yard touchdown. Dural snuck behind Figaro and sophomore cornerback Sojourn Shelton to give LSU its only touchdown of the first half.
Wisconsin's coverage also faltered when Jennings found receiver John Diarse for a 35-yard touchdown on third-and-21 that trimmed the LSU deficit to 24-21 in the fourth quarter. Cornerback Devin Gaulden and linebacker Joe Schobert collided and missed Diarse, and then Figaro missed a tackle as well.
Figaro struggled enough that coaches put Peniel Jean into the game to take his spot.
"It's a lot to expect for Lubern to play perfectly," Aranda said. "So I think what I like about Lubern and what tells me he's going to be a great player is that he takes it so personally and he wants to get better and he recognizes his mistakes right off the bat. So those things are going to aid him to correct the mistakes that he made."
Panic mode? One of the areas in which Wisconsin has struggled in recent seasons is winning close games. The Badgers are 0-9 in their last nine contests decided by seven points or fewer, including 0-5 during the Andersen era. And the fact UW could not close the deal against LSU was disappointing to Aranda.
"I really wanted to see us finish," he said. "We've been in some spots before where this has been the case. It's just how many times can you take a punch in the gut?"
Aranda was asked what type of mindset is required to overcome the hurdle of losing close games. And he said Wisconsin still was working to develop the proper mentality. Some of those shortcomings materialized late in the LSU game, he said, as Wisconsin blew a 17-point lead.
"You can feel it on the sidelines at times to when the very beginning of the game, kids are on the sideline and they're chomping at the bit to get on the field," Aranda said. "After a while, there's a team feeling you get when the defense needs to step up and they feel it.
"But then there's other times. It's really that late third starting in the fourth quarter where it's, 'Here we go again' on the field. And they have to be stronger than that. They can't be thinking that. I almost feel that they think that way. That needs to change."
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