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Donovan shines for Wisconsin against Washington State

Sep 2, 2007 - 2:35 AM MADISON, Wisconsin (Ticker) -- Tyler Donovan made sure that Wisconsin picked up right where it left off.

Donovan threw for a career-high three touchdowns and ran for another as the seventh-ranked Badgers posted a 42-21 victory over Washington State on Saturday in the season opener for both teams.

A senior and a Wisconsin native in his first season as the full-time starter, Donovan threw a pair of scoring strikes in the second quarter to stake the Badgers to a 28-14 lead. He ran for a one-yard TD with 11:12 left in the fourth to cap the scoring.

"We came ready to play. I saw some positive things out there and we were able to win the football game," Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema said. "I can't say enough about our offense today."

Last season, Bielema took over for Wisconsin legend Barry Alvarez and guided the team to a 12-1 record - the winningest mark in school history. If Donovan can continue to play like he did Saturday, a repeat performance could be in the offing.

Donovan completed 19-of-29 passes for 284 yards and three TDs. His favorite target was Luke Swan, who set a career high with eight receptions for 170 yards.

"Donovan threw the ball really well," Washington State coach Bill Doba said. "All in all, based on the stats, I'd say he had a pretty good day."

Swan caught two of Donovan's TD passes, a five-yarder in the first quarter that tied the game, 7-7, and a 38-yarder with 45 seconds left in the second.

Senior Alex Brink completed 17-of-27 passes for 171 yards and a TD for Washington State (0-1), which led 7-0 and 14-7 in the first quarter before Wisconsin started to take control of the game.

Dwight Tardy, who had 96 yards on 21 carries, scored on a nine-yard run to give the Cougars a 7-0 lead, and Christopher Ivory made it 14-7 with a four-yard TD run. Washington State racked up 193 yards in the opening quarter but had just 135 the rest of the game.

"Our defense did some positive things in potential negative situations," Bielema said. "They're smart and intelligent, they go to the sidelines and make adjustments."

Wisconsin (1-0) has now won both all-time meetings with Washington State, including a 36-26 win here in 1976.

"They did like we thought they might do and wore us down," Doba said. "We competed with them early but they're a good, solid team."