All Badgers

Wisconsin safety John Torchio is B1G Defensive Player of the Week

John Torchio is the second player to earn a weekly Big Ten award this season for the Wisconsin Badgers after a huge game versus Purdue.

Matt Belz

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The Wisconsin Badgers played a great game against Purdue, taking down the Boilermakers 35-24 on Saturday afternoon.

While there were several memorable moments and top plays from the game, the definitive player of the game was Wisconsin safety John Torchio.

Torchio led the Badgers with 10 tackles and recorded a pair of interceptions to help guide UW to a double-digit win.

Based on his stellar performance versus Purdue, Torchio was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.

The award is given to the top player from the previous Saturday, with Torchio being the second Wisconsin award winner this season, joining fellow safety Kamo'i Latu who won the award two weeks ago for his play against Northwestern.

Torchio's first interception came within the first few minutes of the game. He jumped an Aidan O'Connell throw and returned it for a 39-yard touchdown in the first quarter to give the Badgers a key defensive touchdown and a 14-0 lead at the time.

The second interception of the day for Torchio came on the opening possession of the second half. He read the Purdue passing attack perfectly and set the Wisconsin offense up with tremendous field position inside the red zone. The Badgers would ultimately punch it in on a Braelon Allen touchdown run to extend their advantage.

In addition to a game-high 10 tackles and his two impressive interceptions, Torchio had a pair of crucial pass-breakups on third downs and was all over the field for the Wisconsin defense.

Torchio currently leads the Big Ten in interceptions with five this season, and the senior has returned two for touchdowns.

For perspective, Torchio is the first Badger to record two interceptions and return one for a score in the same game since Natrell Jamerson did so against Northwestern in 2016. Additionally, the last Wisconsin player to record five interceptions in a season was safety Leo Musso in 2016, while Torchio joins former Wisconsin defensive back Aaron Henry as the only player to record multiple pick-6 touchdowns in the same season in school history.

A three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and nicknamed 'the jewelry thief' by his teammates, Torchio is one of the team's key leaders on the defense and began his career as a walk-on from California. 

After the game, head coach Jim Leonhard had this to say about the senior safety:

"I'm proud of him, he got better, and he got into the end zone this time. He's got such a high football IQ. Understands our scheme, understands offenses and how they attack. You add on top of that timing, not every safety has that and it's a skill that is hard to teach. He's kind of had that from day one, we noticed that, and every time he's staring at the quarter he's got an opportunity to make a big play, and it's our job as a defense to win enough downs to get into situations to allow him to do that. I'm just proud of him. He's been through a lot this last year and to see his growth as a leader, you see his growth as a player, just excited when the results are there on gameday."

Additionally, wide receiver Chimere Dike called out Torchio for his big performance, saying:

"Anytime you can steal a possession, steal seven points it's huge. He [Torchio] does that all the time, that guy is such a smart and instinctual football player. That was big for our game, he had a pick-6 and then a pick that came inside of the 15-yard line that we scored within two plays on them. It's huge, props to him. That's a big part of the reason we won the game."

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Matt Belz
MATT BELZ

Title: Publisher, Beat Writer for AllBadgers.com, a Sports Illustrated Channel Hello, my name is Matt Belz, and I am the site manager at All Badgers. I previously wrote for multiple years at Buckeyes 5th Quarter and have been the leading publisher here since March of 2022.  When I am not covering the Wisconsin Badgers football and men's basketball teams, I enjoy being outside and spending time with family and friends.  You can follow everything I write about on several different platforms. First and foremost on our site...AllBadgers.com You can follow me personally on Twitter at @savedbythebelz or check out our Facebook page at Wisconsin FanNation on Sports Illustrated.

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