In a stadium with a majority of Badger fans, the No. 3 Horned Frogs led No. 5 Badgers 14-13 at halftime at the 97th Rose Bowl Game.
The Frogs and the Badgers set the highest first quarter scoring record in Rose Bowl History with 24 points scored. The last record was 17 points scored by Michigan vs. Washington in the 1993 Rose Bowl.
Wisconsin started the game with a lead early in the first quarter with a 30 yard field goal by Phillip Welch.
The Horned Frog offense came out after Wisconsin’s field goal with power and drove the ball into the end zone. Quarterback Andy Dalton connected with wide receiver Bart Johnson to score the Frogs first touchdown of the game, bringing the lead to the Frogs for the first time in the game.
The game continued to turn over the lead after the Badgers scored a touchdown to regain the lead late in the first quarter. Running back John Clay rushed for 1 yard to score the Badgers first touchdown of the game.
With a majority of the stands colored in red, the sound of Horned Frog fans overtook the stadium, giving the Frogs more energy the louder the stadium got.
Energy kept rising in the Rose Bowl from TCU fans after a 44 yard reception from Dalton to freshman Josh Boyce, bringing the Frogs into the Red Zone. The Frogs used the momentum gained from Dalton’s pass to score their second touchdown of the game, with a run by Dalton.
A turning point in the game was after a missed field goal by the Badgers in the second quarter. Both the Badgers and Horned Frogs offense were strong during the first half, with the first punt coming in the middle of the second quarter by the Frogs.
The first half ended with a field goal by Wisconsin to bring the Frogs lead to only one point at halftime.