FBS college football / FINAL / Sat Sep 12, 2026 6:15 PM CT
Wisconsin runs past Western Illinois 36-9 behind Abu Sama III's 72-yard touchdown
The Badgers scored 17 points in the first quarter, including a blocked-punt return, and never trailed at Camp Randall Stadium.
By BetMetrics
Final
Western Illinois Leathernecks9
Wisconsin Badgers36
WHERE IT TURNED
Wisconsin beat Western Illinois 36-9 on Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium, scoring 17 points in the first quarter.
Abu Sama III ran 72 yards for a touchdown at 14:47, Gavin Lahm kicked a 30-yard field goal at 10:15, and Carson Van Dinter returned a blocked punt 3 yards for a score at 7:54 to make it 17-0. Ronan Culkin's 27-yard field goal with 1:52 left in the quarter got Western Illinois on the board.
The second quarter was all field goals. Lahm connected from 49 yards at 12:48 and from 51 with 2:30 left; Culkin hit a second 27-yarder in between, and it was 23-6 at halftime. Culkin's 34-yard kick at 10:24 of the third made it 23-9, and Darrion Dupree's 28-yard run at 5:39 pushed the lead to 30-9. Chris Brooks Jr. caught a 33-yard touchdown from Colton Joseph at 5:14 of the fourth; the extra point failed.
Sama finished with 107 yards on eight carries. Joseph was 12 of 22 for 173 yards, and Tyrell Henry caught four passes for 91 yards. Wisconsin rushed for 233 yards and totaled 406. Kennedy McGill went 13 of 22 for 139 yards and ran 18 times for 88 for the Leathernecks, who held the ball for 34:57 but went 4 of 15 on third down. Neither team committed a turnover. Attendance was 65,274.