Pasadena, CA – The 106th Rose Bowl Game Presented by Northwestern Mutual came right down the wire in typical Rose Bowl fashion. We saw how great of a quarterback Justin Herbert really is. Herbert managed to accomplish putting three rushing touchdowns in a Rose Bowl Game. That has not been done in a Rose Bowl Game since Vince Young did it in 2006. The Wisconsin Badgers and Jonathan Taylor put on quite the performance as well but ultimately came up just short. The final score came out to be 28-27, with Oregon taking home the coveted Rose Bowl Trophy.
Herbert has nearly a perfect opening drive ending with him rushing for four yards and a touchdown. Wisconsin was quick to respond with a 95 yard kick off return to tie the game up at 7-7. This is just the third time in Rose Bowl history to have a kick off returned for a touchdown. Oregon’s next possession Herbert throws a short pass that was picked off by Jack Sanborn. The Badgers were stopped on the drive and had to settle for a field goal putting them up 10-7 late in the first quarter. With 4:50 left in the first quarter, Herbert connects with Johnny Johnson III for 11 yards, putting them on the Oregon 43. Then Herbert is sacked for a seven-yard loss. The Wisconsin defense was coming at the Ducks aggressively and they are doing a great job at shutting down the run game. The Badgers’ Jonathan Taylor got fed the ball a lot early on, helping establish the run game for them.
Wisconsin finally got the ball moving and pushed ahead into Oregon territory. After picking up a crucial first down Taylor breaks out for a 12-yard run but the play was negated due to a holding penalty on the Badgers. On second down Oregon was able to come up with a big stop forcing third and 19. Wisconsin was then forced to send the field goal unit out and they missed the forty-seven yarder. The next Badgers possession, Taylor fumbles the ball and was recovered by Oregon. Oregon was unable to pick up the first down, resulting in a turnover on downs. Jack Coan was picked off by Oregon’s Thomas Graham Jr. This would give the Ducks great field position and it took just three plays for Oregon to find the end zone. Herbert rushed for a 5-yard touchdown, this gave the Ducks the lead late in the second quarter at 14-10. With a little more than a minute in the first half, Wisconsin forced their way downfield. With just seventeen seconds left the Coan finds Quintez Cephus in the end zone, giving them the lead at 17-14
Wisconsin received the ball to start the second half. Cephus got a short pass from Coan and just trucks through an Oregon defender, picking up 12 yards and a first. The Badgers were unable to convert and forced to punt the ball away. The Badgers punter Anthony Lotti fumbles the snap then Oregon’s safety, Brady Breeze, recovers the ball and runs it back for a touchdown giving the Ducks the lead at 21-17. Wisconsin responded by moving down the field with aggression. Taylor caught a great pass from Coan for thirty-four yards giving the Badgers great field position. The Badgers’ fullback Mason Stokke forced his way through the Oregon red zone defense for a touchdown. Wisconsin regained the lead with just under five minutes left in the third quarter. Herbert and company tried to respond but they were forced to punt the ball away. Wisconsin took advantage of the field positioning and pushed down the field into the red zone right before the third quarter ended
The start the fourth quarter Wisconsin was forced to go for it on fourth down. Luckily they were able to pick up the first down. They were four for five when it came to picking up the first on fourth down. With nine minutes left in the game, Oregon defender Breeze forced Wisconsin wide receiver Danny Davis to fumble the ball. The fumble was recovered by Oregon on the Wisconsin thirty yard line. The Ducks get a great opportunity to score when they recovered the fumble. Herbert rushed for thirty yards resulting in a touchdown. That was Herbert’s third rushing touchdown in the Rose Bowl.
With that touchdown, it put the Oregon Ducks in the lead 28-27. That would end up being the last points put up on the board by either team. As time expired with Oregon in control of the ball you could see the Ducks fan base getting antsy with excitement. Herbert went on to be named the Offensive Player of the game and Breeze was named the Defensive Player of the game. One of the more interesting facts about the game comes with how low the number of total yards Oregon put up. The Ducks put up just 204 total yards. Herbert was 14-20 for 138 yards with no passing touchdowns. Next year will be a big year for the Rose Bowl, the 107th Rose Bowl Game next year will be a CFP Semi-Final game. Until then thank you Wisconsin and Oregon for putting on a great game on New Years Day.
Written by Robert Henry
