Thursday, Dec. 5, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
SUN WIRE REPORTS
Wisconsin is bowl-bound again.
The Badgers will make their third bowl appearance in four years after accepting an invitation to play in the Copper Bowl on Dec. 27 at Tucson, Ariz.
Wisconsin ended the season with a 7-5 record, 3-5 in the Big Ten, after beating Hawaii 59-10 in Honolulu last Saturday night.
In the final game, 260-pound freshman Ron Dayne rushed for 339 yards to raise his season total to 1,863 yards, breaking the NCAA single-season freshman record set by Herschel Walker.
The other Copper Bowl team is expected to be the second-place team in the Western Athletic Conference, Utah or Brigham Young. That depends on what happens Saturday when Brigham Young faces Wyoming in the conference championship at Las Vegas.
Coach Barry Alvarez's Badgers return to postseason play after failing to get a bowl bid a year ago. They followed their win in the 1994 Rose Bowl with a Hall of Fame Bowl victory a year later before going 4-5-2 last season.
Wisconsin opened the season with three nonconference wins, then hit a low point with a 31-0 loss at Iowa for a 5-5 record.
Alvarez said the leadership of his team's seniors was a key to making the season a success despite the setbacks.
"Our kids at one point in the season when we were 3-4 still had the vision to go to a bowl game," he said.
"We had some rough times in the middle of the season," senior co-captain Jamie Vanderveldt said. "I'm just glad we were able to get the ball rolling again."
Dayne's running was a major factor in helping the Badgers realize the bowl hopes.
He rushed for 289 yards and four touchdowns, including a 54-yarder, in a 35-15 win at Illinois, then capped the season in Hawaii last weekend.
In addition to the season rushing record, he set an NCAA single-season freshman standard for carries (295) and tied Walker's record of four 200-yard games.
He set or tied six Wisconsin marks - season yards rushing (1,863), single-game rushing yardage (339), single-game rushing yards for a half (250), season rushing touchdowns (18), season points (114) and season all-purpose yards (1,996).
* HAWAII DEFECTIONS: The fallout from the worst season in University of Hawaii football history is beginning, with three players announcing Wednesday they will attend school elsewhere next season. Quarterback Josh Skinner, expected to compete for the starting job next season, will transfer to Northern Colorado University along with Dylan Micus, the team's top receiver. Defensive tackle Kasey Jackson, billed in the team's media guide as the strongest Rainbow, will transfer to Dixie College in Utah. UH coach Fred vonAppen says it's unfortunate that the players, especially Skinner, are choosing to leave, but he wishes them the best of luck. The coach says Skinner was homesick to return to his native Colorado and was frustrated about the just ended season. "That pretty much sums it up," Skinner said, adding that being closer to his family was a big part of his decision.
* TWO FOR PACE?: Orlando Pace wants to make more history. Last year the Ohio State player became the first sophomore to win the Lombardi Award as the nation's top college lineman, and he's favored to become the first two-time winner of the award tonight. "It means a lot because it would be making history, and anytime you have a chance to make history, it's gratifying," Pace said. "So I'm happy to be here two years in a row." The other finalists for the 27th annual award are Arizona State tackle Juan Roque, Nebraska defensive end Jared Tomich and Virginia Tech defensive end Cornell Brown. Pace, a tackle, helped the Buckeyes to a 10-1 record and their first Rose Bowl berth in 12 years.
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