Oregon was down by seven points as Wisconsin fans were celebrating at the start of the fourth quarter. But the top-ranked Ducks didn’t back down.
Oregon’s players joined Wisconsin’s excited crowd in jumping along to the traditional “Jump Around” song by House of Pain, which plays at the end of the third quarter. After that, the Ducks took control of the game, winning 16-13 on Saturday night.
“We had a mindset going into the game of what that song was going to mean for us and what our reaction was going to be to it,” said Oregon coach Dan Lanning. “Kind of like Pavlov’s dog, right? When you hear that song, it means it’s time to go.”
With 2:36 left in the game, Atticus Sappington made a 24-yard field goal to break a tie, giving Oregon the lead. The Ducks outscored Wisconsin 10-0 in the fourth quarter.
This was not the first time Oregon had come from behind in the final period, as they also overcame fourth-quarter deficits in wins over Boise State and Ohio State this season.
“It just shows the resiliency of everyone on our team,” said Jordan James, who rushed for 121 yards and scored the game-tying touchdown on 25 carries.
Tawee Walker ran for 97 yards on 20 carries for Wisconsin (5-5, 3-4), which lost its third straight game. The Badgers are now 2-15 in their last 17 games against ranked teams and are winless in their six games under coach Luke Fickell against Top 25 teams.
“They did everything we asked them to do,” said Fickell. “They played the way we wanted them to play and expected them to play. We just right now have to find a way to be able to finish.”
After Sappington’s field goal put Oregon ahead, Wisconsin got the ball two more times but couldn’t capitalize.
The Badgers turned the ball over on downs at their own 26-yard line with 2:03 left. Wisconsin had one last chance after Oregon failed to convert on a fake field goal, but Jamaree Caldwell tipped a pass from Braedyn Locke, and Matayo Uiagalelei intercepted it at Wisconsin’s 24-yard line with 1:32 remaining, sealing the victory for the Ducks.
Oregon’s defense played a key role in the win, even though the Ducks scored their fewest points since losing 49-3 to Georgia in their 2022 season opener.
“They played their butt off all night,” said Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who threw for 218 yards on 22 of 31 passing, with one interception. “We put them in some bad spots, but they continued to respond.”
Oregon started the fourth quarter trailing 13-6 and faced a fourth-and-9 at Wisconsin’s 41-yard line. Gabriel responded by rolling left and completing a 15-yard pass to Terrance Ferguson. Three plays later, James ran 11 yards for a touchdown to tie the game with 13:14 remaining.
After a 12-yard punt return by Gary Bryant Jr. set Oregon up at Wisconsin’s 43-yard line with 6:49 left, the Ducks moved into position for Sappington’s go-ahead field goal. Sappington had also made field goals from 35 and 42 yards earlier in the game.
Oregon’s missed chances earlier in the game had kept them behind. Despite outgaining Wisconsin 152 yards to minus-3 in the first three series, Oregon only had a 6-0 lead.
The Ducks missed a scoring opportunity in the first quarter when Nyzier Fourqurean intercepted Gabriel’s pass on a first-and-goal from the 9-yard line.
Wisconsin took a 10-6 lead with 25 seconds left in the first half on a 2-yard touchdown pass from Locke to Will Pauling. Locke was 12 of 28 passing for 96 yards.
The Badgers extended their lead to 13-6 in the third quarter after a 35-yard field goal by Nathanial Vakos, following an ineligible man downfield penalty that had wiped out a 6-yard touchdown pass from Locke to Vinny Anthony.
But after that, Wisconsin couldn’t get another first down, allowing Oregon to come back and win.
“We talked about how the most physical team’s got a chance to win this game,” Lanning said. “And I thought we were the more physical team, certainly in the second half.”
