The 1999 Wisconsin Badgers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1999 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their tenth year under head coach Barry Alvarez, the Badgers compiled a 9–2 record (7–1 in conference games), won the Big Ten championship (the program's first outright championship since 1962), and outscored opponents by a total of 409 to 153. After starting the season ranked No. 9, the Badgers lost back-to-back games against Cincinnati and No. 4 Michigan and dropped from the rankings. In their fifth game, they came back from a 17–0 deficit to beat No. 12 Ohio State and went on to win eight straight games, including a record-setting 59–0 victory over Indiana. The season concluded with a 17–9 victory over No. 22 Stanford in the 2000 Rose Bowl. The Badgers were ranked No. 4 in the final AP and Coaches polls.
Senior running back Ron Dayne gained 2,034 rushing yards and scored 120 points. He won, among other awards, the Heisman Trophy, the Maxwell Award, and the Chicago Tribune Silver Football. Having rushed for over 1,000 yards in each of his four years at Wisconsin, Dayne broke the NCAA Division I-A (now FBS) career rushing record, ending his career with 6,397 rushing yards (7,125 including bowl games).
Other key players included offensive tackle Chris McIntosh who was selected as a consensus All-American, cornerback Jamar Fletcher who led the Big Ten in interceptions and won first-team All-America honors, quarterback Brooks Bollinger who was named Big Ten freshman of the year, and wide receiver Nick Davis who tallied over 1,000 total yards on receptions and kickoff and punt returns.
The team played its home games at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.
Schedule
Rankings
Game summaries At Ohio State
Source: USA Today
Personnel Roster
(players only roster)(coaches)
Regular starters
PositionPlayerQuarterbackBrooks BollingerRunning backRon DayneFullbackChad KuhnsWide receiverChris ChambersWide receiverNick DavisTight endDague RetzlaffLeft tackleChris McIntoshLeft guardBill FerrarioCenter Casey RabachRight guardDave CostaRight tackleMark Tauscher
PositionPlayerDefensive endRoss KolodziejNose tackleEric MahlikDefensive endWendell BryantRush endJohn FavretOutside linebackerRoger KnightInside linebackerDonnel ThompsonOutside linebackerChris GhidorziCornerbackMike EcholsFree safetyJason DoeringStrong safetyBobby MyersCornerbackJamar Fletcher
Statistical accomplishments Team statistics For the 1999 season, inclusive of the Rose Bowl, the Badgers outscored opponents by a total of 409 to 153, averaging 34.08 points per game and allowing 12.83 points per game by opponents. They gained an average of 417.2 yards of total offense per game, consisting of 275.4 rushing yards and 141.75 passing yards. On defense, they allowed opponents to gain an average of 298.1 yards per game, consisting of 109.9 rushing yards and 188.17 passing yards per game.
Ron Dayne Senior running back Ron Dayne gained 2,087 rushing yards on 337 carries for an average of 6.0 yards per carry. Dayne also led the team with 120 points scored on 20 touchdowns. Dayne rushed for over 1,000 yards in each of his four years at Wisconsin; he was only the fifth player to accomplish that feat, following Tony Dorsett (1973-1976), Amos Lawrence (1977-1980), Denvis Manns (1995-1998), and Ricky Williams (1995-1998). On November 12, 1999, Dayne broke the NCAA Division I-A (now FBS) career rushing record of 6,279 yards set the prior season by Ricky Williams. Dayne concluded his college career with 6,397 rushing yards (7,125 including bowl games). (Dayne's career rushing record was surpassed in 2016 by Donnel Pumphrey.)
Other individual statistical leaders Quarterback Brooks Bollinger completed 82 of 140 passes (58.57%) for 1,138 yards, eight touchdowns, two interceptions, and a 142.55 passer rating. He also tallied 454 rushing yards. Scott Kavanagh was the starting quarterback at the beginning of the season, completing 40 of 79 passes for 568 yards with a 116.85 passer rating.
Wide receiver Chris Chambers led the team with 41 receptions for 578 yards and four touchdowns.
Kicker Vitaly Pisetsky converted 46 of 48 extra-point kicks and 16 of 20 field goal attempts for a total of 94 points scored.
The team's leaders on defense included defensive back Jamar Fletcher (seven interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns), linebacker Chris Ghidorzi (115 total tackles), defensive back Jason Doering (79 solo tackles), and defensive tackle Wendell Bryant (seven sacks).
Wide receiver Nick Davis returned 16 kickoffs for 409 yards and two touchdowns, an average of 25.56 yards per return. He also returned 20 punts for 252 yards, an average of 12.6 yards per return. He was also the team's No. 2 receiver with 19 catches for 346 yards.
Awards and honors Ron Dayne Senior running back Ron Dayne swept college football's major awards, including: Dayne won the Heisman Trophy, dominating the voting with 586 first-place selections. Second-place finisher Joe Hamilton received 96 first-place votes, and third-place finisher Michael Vick received 25 first-place votes. He was the second Wisconsin player to win the award, joining Alan Ameche who won the award in 1954. Dayne was a consensus pick on the 1950 All-America college football team, receiving first-team honors from the Associated Press (AP), Burger King/American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), The Sporting News (TSN), the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF), Pro Football Weekly (PFW), and Football News (FN). Dayne also won the Maxwell Award (best all-around player), the Chicago Tribune Silver Football (Big Ten most valuable player), the Doak Walker Award (top running back), the Walter Camp Award (college football player of the year), the Chic Harley Award, the Jim Brown Award, AP College Football Player of the Year, and The Sporting News College Football Player of the Year. Dayne was also selected as the most valuable player in the 2000 Rose Bowl. It was Dayne's second consecutive win as Rose Bowl MVP, having also won the award for the 1999 Rose Bowl. Dayne's achievements were selected by Wisconsin newspaper editors as the top sports story in Wisconsin for 1999. Dayne supplanted the Green Bay Packers who had won the recognition the prior three years.
Others Offensive tackle Chris McIntosh, from Pewaukee, Wisconsin, was also a consensus pick on the 1999 All-America team, receiving first-team honors from the AFCA, AP, FWAA, TSN, WCFF, PFW, FN, and CNNSI. McIntosh was also one of three finalists for the Outland Trophy and set a Wisconsin record with 49 consecutive games started.
Cornerback Jamar Fletcher, from St. Louis, received first-team All-America honors from TSN, PFW, FN, and CNNSI.
Seven Wisconsin players received first-team honors on the 1999 All-Big Ten Conference football team: Dayne (Coaches-1, Media-1); McIntosh (Coaches-1, Media-1); Fletcher (Coaches-1, Media-1); Center Casey Rabach (Coaches-2, Media-1); Offensive guard Bill Ferrario (Coaches-1, Media-1); Defensive lineman Wendell Bryant (Coaches-1, Media-2); and Kicker Vitaly Pisetsky (Coaches-1, Media-1).
Quarterback Brooks Bollinger was selected by the Big Ten coaches and media as the Big Ten freshman of the year.
NFL drafts Four Wisconsin players were selected in the 2000 NFL draft: Ron Dayne Running back 1 11 New York Giants Chris McIntosh Offensive tackle 1 22 Seattle Seahawks Bobby Myers Defensive back 4 124 Tennessee Titans Mark Tauscher Guard 7 224 Green Bay Packers
Eight others were selected in the 2001 NFL draft:
Jamar Fletcher Cornerback 1 26 Miami Dolphins Michael Bennett Running back 1 27 Minnesota Vikings Chris Chambers Wide receiver 2 52 Miami Dolphins Casey Rabach Center 3 92 Baltimore Ravens Bill Ferrario Guard 4 105 Green Bay Packers Roger Knight Linebacker 6 182 Pittsburgh Steelers Jason Doering Defensive back 6 193 Indianapolis Colts Ross Kolodziej Defensive end 7 230 New York Giants
Also, defensive tackle Wendell Bryant was selected in the first round of the 2002 NFL draft, the fifth player from the 1999 Wisconsin team to be drafted in the first round.
References