NCAA Football Bowls Page
PASADENA, Calif. (Sports Network) - Andy Dalton finished 15-of-23 for 219 yards and one touchdown as No. 3 TCU needed a late defensive stop to emerge with a 21-19 win over No. 4 Wisconsin at the Rose Bowl.
Dalton also added 28 yards and a score on nine rushes for the Horned Frogs (13-0), who once again made their case to be worthy of consideration for a BCS championship with their 27th win in their last 28 games.
Bart Johnson had a 23-yard TD reception and Luke Shivers' one-yard touchdown run proved to be the difference for TCU, which posted its first undefeated campaign since going 11-0 in 1938.
Scott Tolzien was 12-of-21 for 159 yards for the Badgers (11-2), who shared the Big Ten title with Ohio State and Michigan State but ended the year by having their seven-game win streak snapped.
Montee Ball ran for 132 yards and one touchdown on 21 carries and John Clay added 76 yards and a score on 11 totes for Wisconsin, which finished with double-digit wins for the fourth time in six seasons.
The Badgers finally got untracked as time ticked away in the fourth quarter. Taking over at their own 23 with 7:32 remaining and down by eight, Clay rushed for 14 yards on first down, then moved 30 yards to the TCU 33 on the next play. Lance Kendricks later picked up a first down on 3rd-and-6 to the 19-yard line with a 10-yard catch, and Clay forged a 1st-and-goal with a two-yard run on 3rd-and-1.
Two plays later, Ball scored from the four and it was 21-19 with two minutes remaining, but Tolzien's conversion pass was knocked down near the line of scrimmage by Tank Carder.
The ensuing onside kick was recovered just past the 40-yard line by TCU, which picked up a key first down with just over a minute remaining on a Waymon James five-yard rush to lock up the victory.
Ball's 40-yard run to start the game put the Badgers in TCU territory, but the drive stalled in the red zone and Philip Welch's 30-yard field goal made it 3-0 almost 4 1/2 minutes in.
Dalton hit Johnson for a 23-yard score on TCU's opening drive and the visitors led 7-3, but Wisconsin answered. A 28-yard hookup from Tolzien to Bradie Ewing put the ball on the one, and Clay took it in on the next play for a 10-7 game.
On the ensuing drive, Dalton called his own number on 3rd-and-2, running in from the four and the Horned Frogs led 14-10 after one quarter.
Welch missed a 39-yard field goal at the end of Wisconsin's first possession of the second quarter, but after the Badgers held the Frogs, Welch connected from 37 yards out and Wisconsin shaved its deficit to 14-13 on the final play of the half.
The Horned Frogs moved 71 yards in six plays to start the second half, and took a 21-13 advantage on a one-yard plunge from Shivers. For the remainder of the third quarter, TCU backed Wisconsin into unfavorable field position when unable to extend its lead.