Photo: Wisconsin Badgers
Jonathan Taylor ran for two touchdowns to help the offense overcome a sluggish start as No. 10 Wisconsin's defense swarmed Northwestern before holding on for a 33-24 win on Saturday.
Alex Hornibrook threw for 197 yards and a touchdown, settling down after two interceptions in the first half. Garrett Dooley had three of Wisconsin's eight sacks.
Northwestern's last drive was thwarted when quarterback Clayton Thorson couldn't find a receiver out of his own end zone and was sacked by safety D'Cota Dixon for a safety.
Thorson was having a good quarter until then, throwing two touchdown passes in less than two minutes. The second scoring pass to Garrett Dickerson with 2:53 left got the Wildcats within a touchdown of the Badgers.
But Wisconsin (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) stood up the Wildcats (2-2, 0-1) again late to seal the win in each team's conference opener.