Utah might be the most unexpected undefeated team, but it's just as surprising to see Wisconsin at 8-0 and ranked No. 5, poised to make a run at the national title game. Even more improbable is that an unknown sophomore, John Stocco, has emerged as a resilient quarterback for the Badgers. Stocco hasn't put up extraordinary stats, and he's not as well-known as the anchor of the Badgers' defense, lineman Erasmus James. But Stocco proved he could lead a productive offense when he threw for 160 yards and two touchdowns against Ohio State Oct. 9 and has played well enough to keep Wisconsin winning since then. He took timeout on Election Night to run the 2-minute drill with the Enquirer's Dustin Dow.

Q: Wisconsin was one of the battleground states. Are you guys more popular in the state than the election?

A: I don't think so. That's been huge here. There were signs everywhere. Honk if you like Kerry. Honk if you like Bush.

Q: But you guys are still popular, right? I mean, you're undefeated.

A: Yeah, I think so.

Q: Do you ever have to remind yourself that you're undefeated?

A: Not really. Our goal the whole season is to be (undefeated after each game). It doesn't matter what happened in the past. The future doesn't matter either.

Q: But you must have national title hopes?

A: I don't think about that at all. A lot of the guys don't think about that. There's too much football left.

Q: How important was that Ohio State game for you?

A: That was big for me. Up until that point, I wasn't playing very well. To go at Ohio State and do things well was important for me. It was a big step. I feel a lot more comfortable now. I've been in quite a few different situations, but until that Ohio State game, I hadn't had that type of big-game experience.

Q: How much does it matter to you that your numbers aren't outstanding, but yet your team is undefeated?

A: It doesn't matter to me at all. I just win football games. I'm going to do whatever it takes. I've done well performing when they need me to. But I do have to get more consistent.

Q: What's more important to your team, your arm or Erasmus James' pass rush?

A: I don't know. 'Ras is unbelievable. He's so much fun to watch. I don't want to choose, but he's unbelievable. Sometimes in practice we go against the (first-team defense). He always gets to me.

Q: Full contact?

A: No. They don't hit the quarterbacks in practice. Thankfully.

Big Ten standings

	Big Ten			Overall
Teams	W	L	Pct.	W	L	Pct.
Wisconsin	5	0	1.000	8	0	1.000
Michigan	6	0	1.000	8	1	.888
Iowa	4	1	.800	6	2	.750
Michigan State	3	2	.600	4	4	.500
Northwestern	3	2	.600	4	4	.500
Minnesota	3	3	.500	6	3	.666
Purdue	2	3	.400	5	3	.625
Ohio State	2	3	.400	5	3	.625
Indiana	1	4	.200	3	5	.375
Penn State	0	5	.000	2	6	.250
Illinois	0	6	.000	2	7	.222

A perfect start

Wisconsin's first eight games of the season:

Date	Opponent	Res.	Score
Sept. 4	CENTRAL FLORIDA	W	34-6
Sept. 11	UNLV	W	18-3
Sept. 18	at Arizona	W	9-7
Sept. 25	PENN STATE	W	16-3
Oct. 2	ILLINOIS	W	24-7
Oct. 9	at Ohio State	W	24-13
Oct. 16	at Purdue	W	20-17
Oct. 23	NORTHWESTERN	W	24-12