Capital Times columnist Mike Lucas, the color analyst for the University of Wisconsin football radio network, offers his thoughts on the Badgers' 37-0 whitewashing of Purdue in a Big Ten Conference game Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium.

Q: This looked like a classic mismatch of styles after the fact. Was there any indication the Badgers would have their way to this extent?

Lucas: On his radio show Thursday night, when Bret Bielema was asked what he had seen in Purdue's defense, he got a smile on his face. And you could tell there was excitement in his face when he broke down what the Boilermakers had seen when it came to the 22 formation -- two running backs and two tight ends. They'd only seen 12 snaps in that set this season.

So, Wisconsin's first snap was 22 personnel, and it kind of set the tone on that first drive that it was going to be smashmouth football.

The end-around with the wingback -- Lance Kendricks -- that was the first time they had used him, and was a nice wrinkle. But the key was just getting John Clay to the second level of the defense, which is something they constantly talk about. When you take a look at Purdue's linebackers, Jason Werner and Joe Holland, they're both converted safeties -- very good players but undersized. And the middle linebacker, Chris Carlino, weighs 215 pounds. So you can see how much of a mismatch that was physically.

Q: In other words, this scenario laid out perfectly for Clay?

Lucas: The Badgers wanted to establish the run and take some of the pressure off quarterback Scott Tolzien -- who didn't have a great day, but he didn't need to. I thought Clay was sharp in the first quarter against Iowa -- might have been as sharp as he was all season long. But then he got hurt and wasn't the same running back. Today, we saw the impact that Clay can have against certain defenses in this league. I mean, that wasn't Iowa or Ohio State. But they took advantage of what they were able to do, especially with the run game.

Q: Would you agree that the game plan addressed UW's concerns as well; that they didn't know which Tolzien they'd see, or whether Gabe Carimi - who has a nagging shoulder injury - and fellow tackle Josh Oglesby could keep the Boilermakers' vaunted edge rushers in check?

Lucas: What Ryan Kerrigan and that front four like to do is rush in predictable passing situations. The Badgers didn't give them that opportunity because they neutralized the pass rush with their running attack. The offensive line deserves a lot of credit for that because they covered up Kerrigan and Co. There was rarely penetration, and they were able to get Clay to the second level. As far as Tolzien -- and his Purdue counterpart, Joey Elliott -- I wasn't sure about the wind conditions on the field. That might have been kind of tricky. But if you're able to run the ball, you don't have to worry about that. I think that was the case from that opening drive, setting the tempo.

Q: Did you ever feel like Purdue was in this game?

Lucas: I thought a key sequence was on the sequence when Purdue took over on the Wisconsin 47-yard line, trailing just 7-0, but went three-and-out. It sounds ridiculous to bring this up in a 37-0 rout, but it was a key defensive stop right after you lost momentum because of a replay reversal on the apparent fumble by Boilermakers receiver Keith Smith. It was the best field position by Purdue early on. They might have been able to get back into the game with a score, even a field goal. Instead they get nothing.

Q: How do you explain Purdue's shockingly lackluster performance considering that they had won two straight games, including a victory on home turf over Ohio State?

Lucas: Purdue looked to me like a team that just doesn't know how to win yet, and is struggling to find its identity under a new coach. I know Danny Hope was there last year as the coach in waiting, but at times today they looked like a team that had hit a wall. That's kind of odd in that they're coming off a two-game winning streak, but this perpetuates what's happened on the road to Purdue of late -- this was their 11th straight road loss.

Q: The Badgers made some changes on defense, both to replace injured Mike Taylor at linebacker with Chris Borland and to solidify their secondary. Obviously, the shutout speaks volumes, but what is your assessment of the defense in its current construction?

Lucas: I thought the decision to go with two corners was a sound one, to give Devin Smith and Niles Brinkley most or all of the snaps while the game was still in the balance. That's what they had to do -- identify their two best corners. That's not to say the others won't play, but it establishes a little stability there. They just never allowed Joey Elliott to get comfortable, and it showed -- whether it was the conditions, the crosswind, he never found his comfort zone, whatever. His throws either were errant or they were dropped. I thought that was contagious, too -- one receiver flubbed a pass, so did the other, and that includes Smith. They could never get into any rhythm offensively. I don't know how you explain that.

Q: Was this as close to a perfect performance as you can get, especially with the Badgers still scathing from two avoidable losses?

Lucas: I don't think you could have asked for a better performance out of a team that lost two games and needed that game to get healthy, both physically and mentally, and it showed today in all facets of the game. It's what you want to see, but you don't always see it. And I think people left this stadium today thinking, 'Oh boy, that was pretty good. That wasn't bad at all. I wanna see what you do next.'

You can't control the schedule, so you may not see another ranked opponent, in all likelihood, until the bowl. That's out of your control. What you can control is getting better. And this team got better, from any point we had seen previously this season.

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