| 1961Wisconsin Badgers football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 18 |
| Record | 6–3 (4–3 Big Ten) |
| Head coach |
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| MVP | Ron Miller |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Camp Randall Stadium |
Seasons | |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2Ohio State $ | 6 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 0 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 6Minnesota | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 8Michigan State | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12Purdue | 4 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 0 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The1961 Wisconsin Badgers football team was anAmerican football team that represented theUniversity of Wisconsin in the1961 Big Ten Conference football season. In their sixth year under head coachMilt Bruhn, the Badgers compiled a 6–3 record (4–3 in conference games), finished fifth in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 179 to 158.[1] They were ranked No. 18 in the finalUPI coaches poll.
QuarterbackRon Miller led the country with 1,487 passing yards, won theSammy Baugh Trophy as the best passer in college football, and was selected as Wisconsin's most valuable player. EndPat Richter was the team's only first-team All-American and led the country with 817 receiving yards.
The team played its home games atCamp Randall Stadium inMadison, Wisconsin.
| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 23 | Utah* | W 7–0 | 36,325 | [2] | |
| September 30 | No. 10Michigan State |
| L 0–20 | 50,584 | [3][4] |
| October 7 | atIndiana | W 6–3 | 23,270 | [5] | |
| October 14 | Oregon State* |
| W 23–20 | 45,274 | [6] |
| October 21 | at No. 4Iowa | L 15–47 | 60,150 | [7] | |
| October 28 | No. 6Ohio State |
| L 21–30 | 58,411 | [8] |
| November 11 | atNorthwestern | W 29–10 | 46,203 | [9] | |
| November 18 | Illinois |
| W 55–7 | 45,122 | [10] |
| November 25 | at No. 3Minnesota | W 23–21 | 66,232 | [11] | |
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The 1961 Wisconsin team tallied 2,749 yards oftotal offense, consisting of 1,696 passing yards and 1,053 rushing yards. On defense, the Badgers gave up 2,822 yards -- 877 passing yards and 1,945 rushing yards.[13]
QuarterbackRon Miller led the country and set a Wisconsin record with 1,487 passing yards. He completed 104 of 198 passes (52.5%) and threw 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for a quarterback rating of 122.8.[14] In the Badgers' victory over Minnesota, Miller broke Wisconsin's single-game record with 297 passing yards.[13]
End Pat Richter led the country with 817 receiving yards. He set Wisconsin single-season records for both receptions (47) and receiving yardage (817). He also broke the school's single-game record with 170 receiving yards against Illinois.[13][10] Richter also led the team in scoring with 48 points on eight touchdowns.[14]
Wisconsin's other receiving leaders included Ron Staley (18 receptions, 234 yards), Louie Holland (nine receptions, 119 yards), and Nap Hearn (nine receptions, 117 yards).[13]
The team's leading rushers were Jim Nettles (213 yards, 39 carries, 5.4-yard average), Louie Holland (177 yards, 62 carries, 2.8-yard average), Bill Smith (153 yards, 43 carries, 3.5-yard average), Neil Fleming (142 yards, 43 carries, 3.3-yard average), and Gerald McKinney (123 yards, 29 carries, 4.2 -yard average).[13]
Jim Bakken handed punting and place-kicking for the Badgers. He led the Big Ten with an average of 41.2 yards per punt in Big Ten games. He had an 89-yard punt against Northwestern that was the longest of the Big Ten season.[13] He also set a modern Big Ten record with a 47-yard field goal against Northwestern.
QuarterbackRon Miller won theSammy Baugh Trophy as the nation's outstanding passer.[15] Miller was also selected as Wisconsin's most valuable player for 1961.[16]
EndPat Richter was the only Wisconsin player to receive All-America honors in 1961. He was selected by theUnited Press International (UPI) as a first-team end on its1961 All-America college football team.[17] He was placed on the second team by theAssociated Press (AP).[18] Richter was also chosen by both the AP and UPI as a first-team end on the1961 All-Big Ten Conference football team.[19][20]
The following players from the 1961 Wisconsin team were selected in the professional football drafts:
1961 draft
1962 draft
1963 draft
1964 draft
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)