Every week Herald Sports will take a look back at the Wisconsin football game and grade the position groups on a scale of zero to five.

Here is how they fared in week six against unbeaten Ohio State:

Quarterbacks — 1.5 of 5

What a weird stat line for junior quarterback Scott Tolzien’s worst game of the season. Completing 60 percent of his passes (on 45 attempts) Tolzien moved the ball fairly effectively finishing with 250 yards — nearly three times as many as his OSU counterpart Terrelle Pryor. Several drops from the wide receiver corps also hurt him. However, Tolzien threw two interceptions the Buckeyes returned for touchdowns, putting the Badgers in a hole they couldn’t recover from. For the first pick Tolzien should have gotten the ball out sooner, and the second interception was a ball that should not have been thrown at all with double coverage on the route. Tolzien also took six sacks, having taken just two in the previous five games.

Running Backs — 2 of 5

Trailing by 15 points heading into the fourth quarter, UW’s backs found their role severely diminished with the offense taking to the air. Still, John Clay finished with only 59 yards at 3.0 per carry and the only rushing touchdown came from safety/holder Chris Maragos. The running backs did chip in with a season-high of six total catches.

Wide Receivers — 3 of 5

Starters Isaac Anderson and Nick Toon combined for 10 catches and 106 yards, while David Gilreath and Kyle Jefferson had their best games of the season with 39 yards and 22 yards, respectively. Gilreath also kept the OSU defense off balance with offensive coordinator Paul Chryst’s favored end around, taking the ball four times for 36 yards. Anderson had two costly drops, however: one for a first down and a tough but makeable catch for a touchdown. In a game where Tolzien had little time to set and throw, the wide outs could have provided more support.

Tight Ends — 1.5 of 5

In their worst game of the season, UW tight ends combined for six receptions and 43 yards. Senior Garrett Graham picked up several penalties and had a long of merely 13 yards. As a tight end, he could have been better utilized as a security blanket to help check the pressure OSU kept bringing. Lance Kendricks and Mickey Turner were mostly invisible on the field.

Offensive Line — 1.5 of 5

Coming off their best game of the season at Minnesota, the O-line took a step back against an athletic, aggressive Ohio State defense. Dubbed as the best defensive line rotation head coach Bret Bielema has seen in the Big Ten, OSU left Tolzien bruised and battered. Reaching Tolzien for six sacks, the Buckeyes knocked him down several other times, winning one-on-one battles repeatedly with the UW line. Left guard John Moffitt summed it up best when he said, “we didn’t really give [Tolzien] a chance.”

Defensive Line — 4 of 5

With the exception of one long drive for the OSU offense, UW’s D played their best game all season. Senior O’Brien Schofield once again competed like a man possessed, registering two sacks and 3.5 tackles for a loss. The Buckeye rushing game was held under 100 yards with most of the yardage coming on two big plays. The one blemish was when J.J. Watt blew containment on Pryor’s 27 yard scramble with less than two minutes in the first half.

Linebackers — 4.5 of 5

Freshman Mike Taylor continued his dynamic play this season, leading the team in tackles with eight including 1.5 for a loss. Aside from his seven tackles, Culmer St. Jean also showed off deft hands and perception reading Pryor’s eyes for the Badgers’ only interception of the game. As a group, they contained the running game and kept Pryor scrambling in the backfield.

Secondary — 4.5 of 5

With an inaccurate quarterback, the secondary did their job holding Pryor to a measly 87 yards passing. The corners stuck to receivers and the safeties helped in the run game. Maragos picked the perfect time to call a fake field goal and showed some burst to find the end zone. The touchdown given up by Antonio Fenelus wasn’t due to poor coverage but a well-thrown ball. The only factors preventing the grade from being a five is OSU’s lack of talent at receiver and an inconsistent Pryor posed little threat.

Specialists — 2.5 of 5

Punter Brad Nortman averaged a decent 48.8 yards in four punts but failed to land any inside the twenty. Kicker Philip Welch inexplicably missed from 33 yards but made from 50, proving every kick with him is still an adventure. He continues to miss to the right, a problem that may be correctable.