Chryst secures his quarterback
Paul Chryst, who had two stints as the offensive coordinator at Wisconsin before being hired as head coach of the Badgers earlier this month, is known for his ability to develop quarterbacks.
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In his first recruiting class at UW, he'll be getting a signal caller who accumulated close to 20,000 yards of total offense (6,749 rushing yards and 12,929 passing yards) with 15 records in the state of Utah during his four-year varsity career. Austin Kafentzis, whose family has extremely strong ties to former head coach Gary Andersen, reaffirmed his commitment to Wisconsin on Tuesday.
The 6-foot-1, 194-pound three-star quarterback from Jordan High School made the news official on The Big Show (105.7 FM), a radio program in Milwaukee.
"I'm 100 percent sure that I want to stick with the Badgers," Kafentzis said Tuesday. "I truly believe that being a Badger is best for me."
Kafentzis said that he spoke with Chryst about the offense he wants to run at UW, and felt like it could be a good fit because of how Chryst used Russell Wilson during the 2011 season.
"I watched a highlight film of Russell Wilson's senior year and what they did over there. It was a pro-style offense," Kafentzis said. "I'm a pocket passer. I can play in almost any offense I feel. I'm not just going to scramble around and run the ball, I'm going to go through my progressions, [and] read the defense."
Kafentzis' pledge to Wisconsin is another huge win for Chryst, who has yet to receive news of a decommitment in the current cycle. An early enrollee, Kafentzis is expected to compete with Joel Stave, Bart Houston, D.J. Gillins and, possibly, Tanner McEvoy, who could play multiple positions, during spring camp.
Kafentzis said that getting a chance to play quarterback was a big part of his decision, since other schools might not have given him the same chance.
"I truly believe that I'm a QB and I truly believe that I can play QB," Kafentzis said. "We had a good conversation and that's kind of what led to my decision. I'm happy that he's going to be the guy coaching me for the next four years."
Wisconsin received a commitment from Kafentzis in June of 2013 after he attended the Badgers' summer camp. Kyle Kafentzis, Austin father, coached Andersen's son, Keegan, in high school, and his nephews played with Andersen's twin sons, Chasen and Hagen. When the coaching switch occurred, the Kafentzis family took an official visit to Oregon State before the dead period.
The trip and family connections, however, were not enough to break Kafentzis' pledge to Wisconsin.
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