MINNEAPOLIS -- The only thing quarterback Jess Cole and his Wisconsin teammates want now is an extra set of long underwear.
'We haven't been to a bowl game in a long time,' said Cole, who watched backup quarterback Randy Wright throw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Michael Jones with 1:05 left Saturday to lead the Badgers to a 26-21 victory over Minnesota.
Wisconsin, 7-4, received and accepted a bid to the Garden State Bowl against Tennessee, 7-4, marking the Badgers first bowl trip since 1962 when they lost 42-37 to USC in the Rose Bowl.
'We'll get cold practicing but that's OK,' Cole said. 'It's great to go to a bowl.'
Cole completed 6-of-17 passes for 84 yards, while the Badgers gathered 203 yards rushing. But it was Wright's two minute offense that saved the game.
Wisconsin, which had led the entire game, trailed 21-20 at the start of the fourth quarter after Minnesota quarterback Mike Hohensee's second touchdown pass of the day. Hohensee hit flanker Chester Cooper on a 4-yard toss and Jim Gallery kicked the extra point to give the Gophers the lead.
Cole made 2-of-6 passes in Wisconsin's next series and Badger Coach Dave McClain inserted Wright into the lineup 'because Cole was not having a good day throwing.'
'Wright certainly did a good job,' McClain said. When asked who will be the starting quarterback in the bowl game, he said 'Cole will be our starting quarterback in the next practice.'
Wright, who had also tried a pass on a fake field goal but was intercepted in the first half, made 3-of-4 passes in the final drive including a 49-yard throw to Jones which put Wisconsin on the Minnesota 18.
'Two minutes like that makes 58 minutes on the bench worthwhile,' said Wright, who came to Wisconsin after one year at Notre Dame. 'I always felt I could do the job. I was just glad I could contribute.'
Wisconsin's victory overshadowed Hohensee and Cooper's record setting performances. The junior college transfer from California hit 17 of 34 passes for 254 yards to finish with 182 completions and 2,412 yards passing. The old single season marks were 177 completions and 2,188 yards set by Mark Carlson in 1979.
Cooper finished with 123 yards receiving on six catches to total 1,317 yards and surpass Elmer Bailey's record of 1,266.
'Records don't mean much when you lose,' Minnesota Coach Joe Salem said. 'We are left with a bad taste that will stick with us until next year.'
Wisconsin finished tied for third in the Big Ten with Michigan and Illinois at 6-3, while Minnesota closed the season 6-5 and 4-5.
'We had opportunities but could not cash in when it really counted,' Salem said. 'The name of the game is mental. We lost because we did not have our heads in the game.'
