College football head coach rankings: Dabo or Saban? Who is the best young coach?
By Dante Pryor
Scouting Report. Wisconsin. Paul Chryst. 9. player. Pick Analysis. Head Coach. 809
- Career Record (9 years): 71-35
- Conference Titles: 0
- National Championships: 0
Wisconsin head football coach Paul Chryst is one of the most underappreciated head coaches in college football. He was an under the radar hire coming from Pittsburgh and all he has done is win ten games four of five seasons he’s been in Madison.
There are many coaches on this list that are coaching at their dream jobs. Orgeron and Franklin are both coaching for their home state’s premier universities. Kelly grew up Irish Catholic in Massachusetts, rooting for the Irish.
Chryst, however, is the only coach on this list — one of a few in all of college football — to play, be an assistant for and coach their alma mater. Chryst played under Dave McClain when the Badgers were a laughing stock.
He came back and coached under Barry Alvarez. He first coached the tight ends; then, after spending 2003-2004 at Oregon State, the Badgers came calling once again.
After coaching Pitt, Chryst became head coach after Brett Bielema left to coach Arkansas.
There’s an old maxim, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Chryst institutes the same system that built the program under Barry Alvarez. They identify talent that fits their system and finds “their guys.”
Think about someone like Zack Baun. He was an all-state quarterback and Wisconsin turned him into one of the best linebackers the school had ever seen.
One of the most significant adjustments that Chryst has made was to level up his recruiting. That was the primary concern when he took the job. He was not known as a great recruiter while an assistant under Bielema.
The last three years, however, we’ve seen the Badgers up the ante in recruiting. They’ve consistently been in the top 30 and have a high 15 class so far in 2021.
They’ve seen the Big Ten west get better and the Badgers realize they need better players if they are going to beat Ohio State.
The system works. The only think Chryst has to do; prove that he can win a title with the system. He can win lots of games.