RB Respect Month Vol. 3, Day 20: Brian Calhoun's one season at Wisconsin was awesome (2006)
From Boulder to Madison.
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Welcome to day 20 of Running Back Respect Month! Yesterday, we talked about the day Jerious Norwood ended the Ron Zook era at Florida. Here's where we're at today, and how the rest of the month looks:
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Today: Brian Calhoun vs. Auburn (2006 Capital One Bowl)
RB Respect Month Vol. 3, Day 20: Brian Calhoun's one season at Wisconsin was awesome (2006)
Wisconsin's running back lineage is as illustrious as any program in college football history. Ron Dayne was FBS' all-time leading rusher from 1999-2016. (He still should be, if the NCAA did the right thing and counted his bowl stats.) Jonathan Taylor and Melvin Gordon had three 2,000-yard seasons and four top-ten Heisman finishes between the two of them. Players like Anthony Davis, James White, PJ Hill, Braelon Allen, John Clay, and Corey Clement all put up monster numbers. In total, the Badgers have a staggering 13 players who ran for at least 3,000 yards during their careers. It'd be 14 if Brian Calhoun played more than one season in Madison.
Calhoun was a force for the Badgers in 2005. His 348 carries led the country, amounting to a Big Ten-best 1,636 yards. He added 571 yards on 53 catches, becoming just the second player in NCAA history to have 1,500 rushing/500 receiving yards in one season. Only Reggie Bush (2,218) had more scrimmage yards than Calhoun (2,207), while Lendale White (26) was the lone player to score more total touchdowns than his 24. Pretty good company to keep, right?
Calhoun cracked the 100-yard mark nine times, including two 200-yard days. The latter of those efforts came in his final game against Auburn in the Capital One Bowl. Calhoun shredded the Tigers for 213 yards and a TD, sending Head Coach Barry Alvarez into retirement in a 24-10 Badgers win:
Calhoun's 213 yards were the sixth-most Auburn had ever allowed an opposing player at the time (still 10th 20 years later). They were the product of both him embarrassing Tigers defenders, plus some awesome blocking. The Badgers' line, tight ends/fullbacks, and even receivers all put in major work to give him some beautifully open lanes to burst through:
