Sorry... he's 3rd in my book behind these two.
Joel Stave, 2012-15
The school’s all-time wins leader with 31 victories in 41 starts, Stave is polarizing because of his inconsistencies as a passer and receiving a lot of those victories in large part to a Wisconsin running game that included Montee Ball, Melvin Gordon, James White and others during his tenure.
Regardless, Stave overcame his original walk-on status, a pair of coaching changes, the yips and his faults to be a proven team leader during his tenure. His 7,635 passing yards is second in school history, as are his 48 touchdown passes. Stave threw a lot during his tenure (he holds the two highest passing attempts totals for a season in school history) but delivered some tremendous performances, like the 2015 Holiday Bowl. Despite a busted nose, Stave was 18 of 27 for 217 yards on his way to Offensive MVP honors.
Darrell Bevell, 1992-95
Bevell’s career to Wisconsin was not a direct path. He redshirted his first season at Northern Arizona University and then went on a two-year LDS mission trip. When that ended, Bevell decided to play for Barry Alvarez’s struggling program at Wisconsin.
Bevell ended up starting all four seasons at Wisconsin and quarterbacked the program to one of its greatest seasons in school history in 1993, a 10-1-1 record, co-champions of the Big Ten and the school’s first Rose Bowl victory that included his iconic 21-yard touchdown scramble that proved to be the winning touchdown.
Bevell finished his career with several school records that still stand today, including starts (43), most passing yards in a single game (423 vs. Minnesota), pass completions in a single game (35 vs. Iowa), career passing yards (7,686). His 61.4 percent completion percentage ranks fourth in school history, his 26 wins ranks fifth and his .640 winning percentage (26-14-3) is 10th.
