Notes: Wisconsin's New-Look Coaching Staff Ready for the Start of Spring

MADISON, Wis. – When the University of Wisconsin opens spring workouts tomorrow morning, the Badgers will have 44 players on their roster who have yet to go through the spring conditioning program. UW also has some people on the coaching staff who will experience it for the first time, too.

Since finishing the abbreviated 2020 season with a victory in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, head coach Paul Chryst hired three new assistant coaches and juggled the play-calling duties. Throw in second-year receivers coach Alvis Whitted going through his first spring with UW after last year’s practices were canceled, the “developmental” aspect over the next five weeks won’t just be limited to the players on the field.

“Who we were able to add to our coaching staff, I think, are really good fits,” Chryst told reporters Monday. “Excited for our staff and really excited for our players. That’s where this spring will be nice to get the opportunity.”

The task at the hands of the three coaches varies. While cornerback Hank Poteat has the luxury of 2020 starters Faion Hicks and Caesar Williams returning, running back coach Gary Brown – hired just last week – has a group full of young backs with limited experience and defensive line coach Ross Kolodziej – who was promoted from his previous job as the head of strength and conditioning – will need to replace two starting defensive ends.

Brown was hired the latest of the three coaches (announced March 25) and came to light thanks in part to former Dallas Cowboys center Travis Fredrick calling to recommend one of his former offensive coaches.

“The fact that he was available, we feel fortunate,” Chryst said of Brown. “We pretty quickly realized that he would be a great fit (and) was interested. I’m excited for our players to be with Gary. I know that anytime you get someone to come in and offer a different perspective, personally I love that influx of new ideas.”

One change that will inject some old ideas is Chryst reinserting himself as the quarterback coach and offensive play caller, an assistant coach role that was previously held by Jon Budmayr and a play-calling role held by offensive line coach Joe Rudolph. With Budmayr taking the offensive coordinator job at Colorado State and Rudolph feeling his plate was already fairly full of game-day responsibilities, Chryst made the decision to take over both roles.

When asked about the challenge of dealing with the quarterbacks and play calling in addition to his head coaching responsibilities, Chryst was straightforward about it.

“You just do it, right?” Chryst said. “I’m not foreign to any of them. I think that helps. Like everything, you don’t feel like you don’t have to do anything necessarily on your own. I’m confident. It all started with what I felt what was best for the program.”

Not hiring a quarterback coach allowed Chryst to hire Poteat, which took some responsibilities off defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard’s plate. Originally hired by Chryst to coach the secondary in 2016, Leonhard added the coordinator position to his job title a year later when Justin Wilcox left for the head coaching job at Cal.

In the offseason, Leonhard turned down the defensive coordinator position with the Green Bay Packers to remain in Madison.

“(Our players) really appreciate, enjoy, fortunate to have Jimmy coaching them, and we get to coach with him,” Chryst said. “Certainly not surprised by the attention he has got in the past. That’s common and yet for him, there never was a question of what this program meant to him … A big reason why he’s doing this is because of this place. It means a ton to him, and he believes he can help our players.”

Few teams know more about the problems created by COVID-19 than the Badgers. Wisconsin had two games canceled last season (at Nebraska, vs. Purdue), had another rescheduled (vs. Minnesota) and dealt with starters missing time due to conference protocols for a positive test.

Even during the offseason, Chryst said the Badgers are getting tested for COVID three times a week with the more invasive/more accurate PCR test, and the University itself has gone to a campus-wide testing program.

So, while masks remain in place around the facilities, there have been few complaints.

“We’ve been through it enough that you know what’s expected and you do it,” Chryst said. “We’re fortunate that we can have spring practice and understand the value of it.”

Extra Points: Veteran defensive end Matt Henningsen will participate in spring after missing the last half of the 2020 season with an arm injury, but second-year James Thompson Jr. (knee) will not. Chryst added that receiver Stephan Bracey and defensive back Dean Engram will also be limited … The Badgers’ March 30 start to spring practices is one of the latest in recent memory, a decision Chryst said was made to “try to get as much (out of) winter conditioning program. I felt we had a good first phase in that.” … Chryst does not believe that any players will be going through a drastic position change this spring.