University of Wisconsin sophomore punter Brad Nortman has a friend who punts for UCLA.

Nortman will sometimes tease his buddy about the perfect weather he usually gets to punt in. But Nortman wouldn't have it any other way.

"It's not fun to kick in," Nortman said of the lousy weather that usually arrives in the Big Ten Conference late in the season. "But at the same time, I look at my friends who are kicking in California and stuff, I think I have a little bit more pride that way. I know I've kicked through all the elements I possibly could."

The weather forecast for Bloomington, Ind., on Saturday is pleasant, with temperatures in the upper 60s.

Perhaps nobody on the Badgers is looking forward to those conditions more than Nortman, who has dealt with wind and cold the last two games at Camp Randall Stadium.

"Wind-wise, I would probably say Iowa was probably the worst," Nortman said of the Oct. 17 game. "It had the worst consistent wind.

"Then Purdue (last week) had gusts that came in. The stadium is not that great with wind. You just have to deal with it and help our team out."

Nortman was sailing along through six games. He averaged 48.8 yards on four punts against Ohio State in the sixth game and his average of 44.4 at the time would have ranked him 15th nationally, although he was one punt shy of qualifying for the NCAA statistics.

He averaged 44.6 yards in the next game against Iowa but that figure was deceiving, since he was helped out by a couple big bounces on short punts. He averaged a season-low 36 yards against Purdue.

Nortman had an up-and-down freshman season last year, when he ranked sixth in the Big Ten with an average of 41.8 yards. Even with the weather the last two games, he currently ranks third with an average of 42.8.

"Everything was the same," Nortman said of the first six games. "I was getting the ball over my foot (on drops). When it's warm weather, it makes it a little easier to be consistent. I have a lot of confidence, still. Things are just going well."

The former Brookfield Central athlete was not complaining about the challenges of punting in poor weather.

"I knew it when I signed up for the job," he said. "I'm excited to meet the challenge."

The biggest obstacle to kicking in strong winds is the drop. About the only thing Nortman said he can do in heavy winds is shorten his a bit and focus more.

"The drop is everything," he said. "For me, it's a matter of putting it in the right spot every time. The thing I'm dealing with, sometimes (the ball) sneaks inside so I have kind of an end-over-end kick. Last couple weeks the wind has really been playing with that."

Confidence boost

It looks like kicker Philip Welch has worked out his problems. Welch made all three field-goal attempts last week and followed that up with a good week of practice despite limited work, UW coach Bret Bielema said.

"We cut back on his kicking this week considerably and I think it's going to help him," Bielema said Thursday of Welch, who was dealing with a slight groin injury and had missed attempts of 33 and 38 yards the previous two games.

Bielema said the three field goals Welch made against Purdue (32, 42 and 22 yards) were "huge" for his confidence. Welch is now 11-for-17 for the season.

"It was a windy day," Bielema said. "I really thought that was a big confidence boost. Just some of the kicks I saw him do this week have been very, very good."

Less laundry

In Big Ten games only, the Badgers are tied for the fewest penalties in the conference with Michigan. Both teams have 22 for 170 yards.

Bielema made cutting down on penalties a major focus in the offseason. The Badgers ranked eighth in the Big Ten last season in all games with 69 for 616 yards. That was an average of 47.4 penalty yards per game.

Their penalties in all games are down only slightly. For the season, they have 41 for 355 yards, an average of 44.4 yards. They are on pace for 67 penalties.

Still, Bielema has been pleased with the reduction in pre-snap penalties, which were a major problem last season.

"It's something we emphasize every day," Bielema said. "I think guys are being more conscientious about what we are doing. I know we eliminated a lot of pre-snap penalties, which is the one that really got frustrating."

Extra points

Bielema said it's unlikely backup strong safety Kevin Claxton, who suffered a concussion in the last game, would play against Indiana. ... The kickoff return plan is the same as last week. David Gilreath will get the first return, Isaac Anderson will get the second and Nick Toon could also get a chance. The only kickoff by Purdue last week was a touchback.

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