Dec. 27, 1996
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Freshman tailback Ron Dayne concluded his remarkable rookie season with a 246-yard, three-touchdown performance in Wisconsin’s 38-10 win over Utah in the Copper Bowl.
Dayne was named the game’s Most Valuable Player. He totalled 152 yards by halftime as the Badgers opened up a commanding 31-3 lead. QB Mike Samuel got the UW on the board with a 38-yard run. After Utah kicked a field goal, Dayne scored (two carries for 77 yards) to give the Badgers a 14-3 lead.
The Utes were driving again when Cyrill Weems intercepted a pass and returned it 82 yards for a TD and a 21-3 bulge. The Badgers’ secondary picked off four Mike Fouts passes.
The featured matchup between Dayne and Utah’s Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala, the nation’s two largest runners, never materialized. The Ute ballcarrier hurt his ankle early in the game.
Badger defensive end Tarek Saleh was game defensive MVP with six tackles, one for a loss, one pass broken up and a blocked field goal. It was the Badgers’ third bowl win in four seasons.
Scoring 1 2 3 4 F
Wisconsin 14 17 0 7 38
Utah 3 0 0 7 10
Team statistics UW Utah
First downs 16 26
Rushing yards 45-349 31-103
Passes 2-6-0 27-49-4
Passing yards 16 327
Total offense 365 430
Punts-avg 2-41 2-31
Fumbles-lost 2-1 1-0
Penalties-yards 3-31 2-11
Individual Leaders
Rushing: Dayne (W) 30-246, Samuel (W) 5-44, Johnson (U) 20-88. Passing: Samuel (W) 2-6-0-16, Fouts (U) 27-49-4-327). Receiving: Hayes (W)1-9, Keehan (U) 6-100, Dyson (U) 6-95.
Attendance: 42,122
