Wait — Scott Tolzien?

That was the recurring question in Madison heading into the fall as head coach Bret Bielema listed Tolzien ahead of Dustin Sherer and Curt Phillips on the quarterback depth chart.

But on the first play of the 2009 season, the junior had an answer for all his doubters.

The first-year starter connected with Isaac Anderson on a play-action pass for an 80-yard score as Camp Randall erupted. That would be the first of many big plays from the new signal-caller, who broke the UW record for single-season completions. Tolzien led the Badger offense to the top of the conference in scoring this past year, while O’Brien Schofield led the way for an improved UW defense that finished at the top of the Big Ten in run defense.

UW took down Northern Illinois in the home opener but found itself in a dogfight with Fresno State in week two. But a 72-yard touchdown run from eventual Big Ten offensive player of the year, John Clay, helped push the game to overtime where a Chris Maragos interception paved the way to victory.

Wofford and Michigan State proved to be no match for the Badgers, but week five presented a challenge in Minneapolis with Paul Bunyan’s Axe on the line.

A three-touchdown performance from Clay helped provide the Badgers with a late lead, but the Gophers had the ball down three in the final minute. Once again, the defense stepped in to secure the win as Big Ten freshman of the year, Chris Borland, recovered an Adam Weber fumble.

At 5-0, UW knew its conference title hopes were on the line in weeks six and seven. The Badgers had to travel to the Horseshoe before coming home to take on Iowa in critical back-to-back weeks.

But in week six, the ninth-ranked Buckeyes returned two Tolzien interceptions for scores, and those mistakes proved to be devastating in a 31-13 loss. A week later, more mistakes led to another defeat.

This time, with Clay sidelined due to injury, Tolzien threw three interceptions as No. 11 Iowa made a second-half comeback to earn the win in Madison.

After a bye week, the Badgers regrouped and let out some frustration at home against Purdue. Behind a relentless defensive effort and 266 yards on the ground, the Badgers got back on track with a dominating 37-0 victory.

Following a close win at Indiana, UW returned home for Senior Day to take on Michigan for the final home game of the year, and the Badgers did not disappoint. Tolzien threw four touchdowns, two to wideout Nick Toon, as the offense exploded in a 45-24 win.

The Badgers suffered from a bit of a letdown the next week in Evanston. A slow start was too much to overcome as Northwestern held on for a late win, but there was more work to be done. UW traveled to Hawaii and blew out UH to earn their ninth win of the year.

The 9-3 regular season sent the Badgers to Orlando for the Champs Sports Bowl against 15th ranked Miami and UW was determined to get to double-digit victories. Tolzien, Clay and co. controlled the game throughout, and the UW defense forced a late turnover on downs to clinch UW’s first bowl victory since 2006 as the Badgers finished the year ranked 16th nationally.