Wisconsin football: Season-opening night games revisited

With Wisconsin set to kick off their season in Camp Randall Stadium at night against Illinois State, we revisit previous night games to open the season.

The Wisconsin Badgers will begin their 2022 football season under the lights of Camp Randall Stadium.

The Badgers welcome the Illinois State Redbirds to Madison on September 3 for a 6 p.m. CST kickoff, with the game aired on FS1.

Illinois State is an FCS school from Normal, Illinois, and the game will represent the first game of the year for both teams. For Wisconsin, the game will also be an opportunity to start the season with a win after dropping last season's home opener against Penn State. 

Additionally, the night game will allow fans to tailgate to the fullest and build excitement for the 2022 season.

However, the game is far from the first time the Badgers will begin their season at night. In fact, since 2010, the Badgers have started the season at night seven times. 

Wisconsin has a 5-2 record in those seven contests, with the lone losses coming to Alabama and LSU in neutral site games within Texas. 

In the most recent night opener, the Badgers started the 2020 season with a bang, blowing out Illinois 45-7 at Camp Randall behind a five touchdown performance by Graham Mertz.

The year prior, Jonathan Taylor ran all over USF on the road at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, leading the way for an impressive 49-0 win over the Bulls. 

In 2018, it was a similar story, as the Badgers took down Western Kentucky 34-3 at Camp Randall, with Alex Hornibrook throwing for over 250 yards and two touchdowns. 

Wisconsin hammered Utah State in 2017 to open the season at night. A 59-10 win, the game included a comeback by the Badgers, who tailed by 10 after the first quarter. Alex Hornibrook put together another big performance, but a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown by walk-on Joe Ferguson stole the show.

2014 and 2015 did not go as smoothly for the Badgers. In 2014 Wisconsin fell by four to LSU despite a strong performance by Melvin Gordon, including a 63-yard touchdown run to open the second half. Gordon did not see many touches the rest of the way, thanks to head coach Gary Andersen while starting quarterback Tanner McEvoy threw for only 50 yards on 24 attempts. 

The 2015 game was not nearly as close, as Alabama was in control throughout. Derrick Henry ran for three touchdowns for the Crimson Tide, while Wisconsin could not run the ball that day and finished with 40 team rushing yards in a 35-17 loss in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Wisconsin began the season in Las Vegas against UNLV and won that matchup 41-21 back in 2010, a game that was an incredibly late kickoff.  

Overall, with an FCS opponent scheduled for opening night this year, the hope has to be that the team puts together a similar performance as the last four home openers that occurred at night against Illinois, USF, Western Kentucky, and Utah State. 

The Badgers will be working in several new starters on both sides of the ball, and the coaching staff has undergone plenty of changes this off-season too, so interest is high to see what this new iteration of Wisconsin football will look like come September 3.

Related links:

• Kickoff times released for six Wisconsin football games

• Paul Chryst ranks as a top-15 coach for 2022

• Post-spring depth chart on offense

• Post-spring depth chart on defense

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