Positional battle at right guard...again?
Sep 18, 2012 -- 5:19pm
By TOM LEA
tlea@espnwisconsin.com
MADISON – The more highly publicized positional battle, both during fall camp and through the first three weeks of this season, has been centered on the Badgers quarterbacks.
Transfer Danny O’Brien beat out freshman Joel Stave and senior Curt Phillips back in August, but after enduring a halftime benching against Utah State, that position is back in the midst of its fair share of turmoil.
But the signal callers aren’t alone.
Head coach Bret Bielema listed both Zac Matthias and Kyle Costigan as co-starters for the final non-conference game of the season this weekend. It’s a move that signifies the battle at right guard that featured as many as three players (Matthias, Costigan and senior Rob Burge) is ongoing.
“I didn’t check with anybody else,” Bielema said. “I see Kyle is coming along. Game one, week one, we made the decision that Zac was probably the guy to go to. He does a lot of really good things. He’s good in pass pro, but he got called for two penalties.
“That’s unacceptable.”
Costigan, a defensive line transplant that made the switch last spring, has yet to start a game this season, but he did receive 14 reps during Wisconsin’s week one win over Northern Iowa.
“The play of right guard isn’t something that grabs the headlines,” Bielema said. “But it’s a position that makes a lot of difference for us. It’s not just Zac. We’ve got to play better up front overall. And the penalties are inexcusable.
“They’re just not going to be tolerated.”
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