MADISON - Monday morning, reporters had a chance to catch up with head coach Paul Chryst for the first time during the regular season.

Chryst spoke about the injury quarterback Chase Wolf suffered during camp, the status of Isaac Hamm and the inside linebacker room, among other things.

With depth already a concern at quarterback, Wisconsin lost the only other signal caller with in-game experience, aside from Graham Mertz, in Chase Wolf.

Dario Melendez of WISN12 first reported that Wolf, a senior quarterback, suffered a torn meniscus. During his press conference Monday morning, Chryst confirmed the report and said they are unsure when he'll return.

"It’s one of those where you don’t quite know for how long exactly, but he did last week suffer that," Chryst said. "You feel terrible for him. I really liked what he was doing in camp. The one thing is Chase will stay in it and when he can get back, he will be ready to go."

The injury leaves Wisconsin with Deacon Hill, Myles Burkett and freshman walk-on Marshall Howe as the reserves behind Mertz. Of the trio, no one has played a snap in a game.

"They’re in that stage where they have to keep developing," Chryst added. "It’s always a little bit more difficult at this point, but there’s some opportunities and that’s what we’ve got to do. Can’t sit here right now and tell who’s further ahead or not. Deacon has certainly had more overall reps and Myles had this spring and what he got in camp.

"All have done a good job of preparing the mental side of it and now are going to get some more reps."

In the initial depth chart this week, Wolf was penciled in as the backup. Hill, however, should slot in as the primary reserve - he had been the third up at quarterback during camp and played on the scout team a season ago.

From limited reps he took in practices open to reporters, Hill improved in terms of accuracy and ball placement. While talented with a big arm, his development still has some time to go.

Now in his fifth year, Wolf has appeared in 10 games, going 15-for-25 for 155 yards with a pair of touchdowns and four interceptions. Mertz revealed to the media that Wolf was scheduled to be going through surgery on Monday.

True freshman Isaac Hamm, a standout out of Sun Prairie, was a notable absence from the roster during Big Ten media days. When speaking with reporters, Chryst mentioned that Hamm was taking classes at MATC. Chryst noted that he spoke with Hamm earlier this week but no true update at this time.

"Just talked to him the other day and working through that right now," Chryst said. "So nothing yet, but I think in a little bit we’ll know a little bit more specific."

Of the notable takeaways from the initial depth chart was a starting tandem at inside linebacker of junior Maema Njongmeta and sophomore Jordan Turner. Njongmeta consistently saw reps with the first team throughout camp and ultimately earned a starting role against Illinois State.

"It wasn’t like Maema just approached it like, OK Leo (Chenal) and Jack (Sanborn) are leaving and now I’m going to flip this switch," Chryst said, "It’s going to mean something to me. I’ve loved the way that he’s progressed throughout his time here... Certainly Maema you like to see it because he’s worked over time and now that there is opportunity, he’s done a good job of taking advantage of that. It didn’t just start this year, it’s been going on over time."

Expect to see a solid rotation at the position with first-year position coach Mark D'Onofrio working in multiple duos with a group that consisted of Njongmeta, Turner, Tate Grass, Jake Chaney and Bryan Sanborn. The trio of Sanborn, Chaney and Grass each saw a considerable amount of reps during fall camp and made plays at different instances.

"The group of inside backers, I think we have a group that we feel good about and yet, they’ve got to play," Chryst said. "They don’t have a ton of experience. Maema doesn’t have a ton of experience, but he’s played. The same can be said for J.T. (Jordan Turner), who did a nice job when he got an opportunity to play. Tate Grass has done a lot for this team but he’s in a good position. Jake Chaney is a young man we’re excited about and I’ve liked the growth and development of Bryan Sanborn. That whole group I appreciate."

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