LINCOLN, Neb. — Aaron Cruickshank felt it was bound to happen.
Given how they were blocking and creating creases, the University of Wisconsin football team’s kick-return unit was going to pop one for a touchdown.
It finally occurred in the first quarter of the Badgers’ 37-21 win over Nebraska, when Cruickshank fielded a ball at the 11-yard line, followed a large lane created along the east sideline, and found open field. Cruickshank, a sophomore, had to outrun the kicker and then avoid another defender near the goal line, but he crossed the plane to secure the program’s first kick-return score in four years.
“I just saw a big open lane,” Cruickshank said. “I’m just thankful for 44 (John Chenal), everybody on the kick return, really. But 44 and No. 14 (Nakia Watson), they led me in there and I just had to beat the kicker and that’s one job you have to do, so I’m thankful they let me do my job.”
Cruickshank joked that he didn’t want to experience going back to the sideline if he had been brought down by Nebraska kicker Barret Pickering. Nor was he going to go out of bounds with a final man to beat for the touchdown.
“So many times, being so close to breaking one, I just thought, ‘Back juke one time and see if it works,’” Cruickshank said.
Cruickshank said he told his teammates on the unit to “be ready to run” Saturday, and he was glad he could back up his words. The play also supported what UW coach Paul Chryst said at his Monday press conference, when he said that unit had taken good strides.
The return answered a quick scoring drive from Nebraska that was set up by a Jonathan Taylor fumble.
Cruickshank said he could feel that momentum swing back to his sideline after his score.
“They know that I’m going to try to make something shake,” he said. “It’s all about trust and confidence. I’m glad that they trust me and I just took it and ran with it.”
Taylor credits Coan’s ‘NFL’ throw
Senior receiver A.J. Taylor had just made his break on a short post route in the second quarter and turned his head toward the line of scrimmage and his quarterback, junior Jack Coan.
As he did so, the ball was already on its way to him, as Coan rifled a pass into a tight window and hit Taylor on his front shoulder so he could run after the catch. Taylor made two men miss en route to a 55-yard touchdown — his second score of the season.
“I knew that on that play I needed to win, but right as soon as I won, it was right there. That’s like, pro ball, NFL ball, when the ball’s right there as soon as you get out of your break. That was good, that was really good,” Taylor said.
Taylor has had good success with slants and short posts all season, something he said comes from good game-planning.
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