2006 Capital One Bowl Explained

Year Game Played:2006
Game Name:Capital One Bowl
Football Season:2005
Visitor Name Short:Wisconsin
Visitor Nickname:Badgers
Visitor School:University of Wisconsin
Home Name Short:Auburn
Home Nickname:Tigers
Home School:Auburn University
Visitor Record:9–3
Visitor Conference:Big Ten
Home Record:9–2
Home Conference:SEC
Visitor Coach:Barry Alvarez
Home Coach:Tommy Tuberville
Visitor Rank Ap:21
Visitor Rank Coaches:20
Visitor Rank Bcs:18
Home Rank Ap:7
Home Rank Coaches:7
Home Rank Bcs:9
Visitor 1Q:10
Visitor 2Q:7
Visitor 3Q:0
Visitor 4Q:7
Home 1Q:0
Home 2Q:0
Home 3Q:3
Home 4Q:7
Date Game Played:January 2
Stadium:Florida Citrus Bowl
City:Orlando, Florida
Mvp:RB Brian Calhoun, Wisconsin
Odds:Auburn by 10.5
Referee:Ron Cherry (ACC)
Attendance:57,221[1]
Payout:4.25 million
Us Network:ABC
Us Announcers Link:List of announcers of major college bowl games
Us Announcers:Ron Franklin, Bob Davie, and Holly Rowe

The 2006 Capital One Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game between the Wisconsin Badgers and the Auburn Tigers on January 2, 2006, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida. Despite the odds against them, Wisconsin defeated the higher ranked Tigers, 24-10.[2]

Prior to the bowl game, Barry Alvarez announced that he would be stepping down as head coach of Wisconsin after 16 seasons and eight bowl victories in order to focus his attention on his duties as the athletic director at the University.

Brian Calhoun, the MVP of the game, rushed 30 times for 213 yards and a 33-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to seal the game for the Badgers. This would turn out to be his last collegiate football game as Calhoun opted to forgo his senior year in favor of entering the NFL Draft. Badgers QB John Stocco threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns. Wisconsin wide receiver Brandon Williams caught six passes for 173 yards and a touchdown in addition to 35 yards rushing.

Despite having the top offense in the Southeastern Conference, Auburn was not able to establish themselves against the Badgers defense. In the 2005 season, Auburn had not been shut out in the first half. Overall, Auburn's offense was outgained by Wisconsin by over two to one.

Statistics

Statistics Wisconsin Auburn
1st Downs 24 19
Total Yards 548 236
Passing Yards 301 137
Rushing Yards 247 99
Penalties 7-56 5-35
3rd Down Conversions 7–15 4-14
4th Down Conversions 0-0 2-2
Turnovers 1 2
Time of Possession 30:48 29:12

Scoring summary

Scoring PlayScore
1st Quarter
WIS – Brandon Williams 30 Yd Pass from John Stocco (Taylor Mehlhaff kick), 7:55WIS 7-0
WIS – Taylor Mehlhaff 19 Yd FG, 0:21WIS 10-0
2nd Quarter
WIS – Owen Daniels 13 Yd Pass From John Stocco (Taylor Mehlhaff kick), 7:19WIS 17-0
3rd Quarter
AUB – John Vaughn 19 Yd FG, 11:54WIS 17-3
4th Quarter
AUB – Courtney Taylor 9 Yd Pass From Brandon Cox (John Vaughn kick), 14:49WIS 17-10
WIS – Brian Calhoun 33 Yd Run (Taylor Mehlhaff kick), 13:22WIS 24-10

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Capital One Bowl History.
  2. News: Badgers win Capital One Bowl in Alvarez's final game. https://web.archive.org/web/20060218124706/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=260020002. dead. February 18, 2006.