Saw on Twitter. Leonard named interim coach.
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shocking. things must’ve been pretty bad in the locker room
Some alums must have come up with a lot of money.
Poor JL, not sure anyone can get this line to block better, can make theses DBs quicker, can make Mertz into a complete QB.
They need better players.
there is plenty of money coming from the new tv deal
@Pikes Peak posted:Poor JL, not sure anyone can get this line to block better, can make theses DBs quicker, can make Mertz into a complete QB.
They need better players.
the oline played like they were wearing cement shoes yesterday. hope leonard can light a fire
Let me clue you all in on alums or donors or ticket holders
This isn’t Wisconsin 1990 when half the stadium was full. Football revenue rules college athletics. The Badgers have done relatively well the last 30 years. They’ve invested and upgraded Camp Randall twice during that timeframe. The program has expected followers to pay back their loyalty accordingly. Granted, it’s not LSU or Alabama or Texas or Oklahoma or Georgia or OSU or Michigan but UW is probably still a top 25 revenue generating program overall. Back in 2020, Wisconsin was ranked 13th overall with almost 90M generated.
No one expects them to win national championships, but the image of 1/4 of the stadium empty in the 4Q should have set off alarm bells.
Chryst was running Wisconsin like it was still 1988. He won’t be missed.
Mac sure isn't Barry, is he (though I can imagine Barry kicked his dog pretty hard losing to bert).
I can't say Jim is the right guy, but he's definitely earned the shot. His first test won't be Northwester, but if he can keep this recruiting class together. I really hope Jim can stop Bucky from getting pushed around.
I'm curious to see how Leonard handles the QB situation. I think running off Coan, committing the Mertz, and sticking with him cost Chryst as much as anything. I don't think the Badgers have much to lose by giving Burkett more opportunities and going with a mobile QB. But the overall talent has gotten worse each year.
It was time.
When App State can go into Texas A&M and win and Middle Tennessee State can do the same to Miami…its’s not the caliber of the “talent” ..it’s the coaching and motivation.
Anyone who wanted Coach Chryst gone isn’t a part of this team.
— Braelon Allen (@BraelonAllen) October 3, 2022
I get it he’s their coach. I expect the players to make comments like that.
He’s just not an effective head coach. Pitt actually got better after he left. I am hopeful for the same this time around.
I was totally shocked with the timing of the firing. I would have thought that if it happened at all it would be the day after the season ended.
As for PC I have always thought PC seemed like a good dude who loved coaching UW. But, the program has started to decline (especially offensively) over the past couple of years and I do think it was time to move on.
As Tschmack said I don't think anyone believes UW will compete for national titles with the likes of Bama, O$U and UGA but I do think its fair to think they should be competing for the BIG title consistently. And hopefully if Leonard gets the gig long term he will have them at that level.
Problem is…if Leonard elevates the Badgers as we hope he will, the SEC will come a callin’
Hopefully he succeeds and desires to be a Badger lifer.
@Blair Kiel posted:It was time.
When App State can go into Texas A&M and win and Middle Tennessee State can do the same to Miami…its’s not the caliber of the “talent” ..it’s the coaching and motivation.
Could be both.
The advantage JL has over PC is Leonhard is the classic success story for Wisconsin that should translate well in recruiting.
He was a walk on and was named All Big Ten two years and tied the team mark with 21 INTs during his career. Then went on to have a respectable 10 year NFL career.
I will miss Chryst. It's wonderful that there are great expectations and I have loved watching them win for the last three decades, but Wisconsin operating like this feels creepy. I can't see how this will help recruiting and paying an absentee coach 16 million bucks will make it harder to bring in and pay a flashy greaseball SEC type coach. Madison winters won't help with that either, although maybe the lack of hurricanes will be an attraction.
Maybe this is about making sure Leonard stays long term. That would be the only sliver of positiveness I could see in this.
I don't think Leonard is a lock to get the job unless he's willing to clean house on the coaching staff. I think there's plenty of blame there as well. I saw Lance Liepold's name getting mentioned. He does check a lot of the boxes the Badgers could be looking for. Someone with a little more intensity is a must.
I'd take Chryst over that over the top type like P J Fleck any day. And I think Loenard will be more like Chryst than that asshole Fleck. The SEC can have him.
Much like the Brewers, the Badgers football program needs to decide if they are serious about winning.
The good news for Milwaukee is I think they have a decent skipper in Counsell. Leonhard could be that guy for UW, but they’ll get a better look the rest of the year with him at the helm.
I’m talking more about money and resourcing. It’s been known for a while now that UW doesn’t pay assistants well and they really need to look at a new indoor football field to keep up with other top programs. I also question how much they emphasize recruiting and what it takes compared to teams like Ohio Stare and Michigan and Penn State and even Michigan State.
@Tschmack posted:Much like the Brewers, the Badgers football program needs to decide if they are serious about winning.
The good news for Milwaukee is I think they have a decent skipper in Counsell. Leonhard could be that guy for UW, but they’ll get a better look the rest of the year with him at the helm.
I’m talking more about money and resourcing. It’s been known for a while now that UW doesn’t pay assistants well and they really need to look at a new indoor football field to keep up with other top programs. I also question how much they emphasize recruiting and what it takes compared to teams like Ohio Stare and Michigan and Penn State and even Michigan State.
Ohio State is at a whole other level than any other Big 10 team. Michigan is a tier below OSU, but I think Wisconsin can realistically be the 4th best team in the Big 10 over the next decade (USC is likely to be back up with OSU soon).
Penn State just doesn't have the cache it did when we were younger.
Michigan State is in much worse shape than Wisconsin. They are still recovering from the Nasser scandal and, just last month, the Board of Trustees almost fired the new president. The president survived for now, but it's not exactly a stable situation. Add to that the fact that they may have given Mel Tucker the worst contract in the history of college athletics.
Mel Tucker is guaranteed 95 million over the next 10 years. In 2013-14, he was the defensive coordinator of some of the worst defense in Chicago Bear history. He took a step down to DB coach positions at Alabama and Georgia the next 3 years and parlayed that into a job at Colorado where he went 5-7. Based on that, MSU hired him and he went 2-5 in the pandemic year. His ONE good year as a head coach was when he went 11-2 in 2021. In 2021 you could argue he really had 1 great win (MSU beat Michigan by 4). They beat a 7-6 Penn State team by 3 and got by Pittsburgh 17-13 in the bowl game which may count as good wins. Other than that the wins were against a 7-5 Miami team, Maryland, Rutgers, Indiana, Nebraska, Northwestern, Western Kentucky, and Youngstown State. It was a year where they got play almost the entire bottom of the Big 10 and avoided the "good, but not great" teams that year in Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. They got beat badly at Purdue (40-29) and blown off the field by OSU (56-7). MSU panicked that some SEC team was going to hire him, so they threw almost 100 million at him pretty soon after he
Other than 2021, he's not had a winning season and his overall record if you remove that year is 9-15. This year Tucker's record is the same as the Badgers (2-3 and 0-2 in the Big 10). The next four weeks MSU plays at OSU, Wisconsin, at Michigan, and at Illinois. At best they are likely to be 3-6. If he can't beat Wisconsin in East Lansing they'll be 2-7.
I guarantee you from talking to some connected alumni they would rather have Paul Chryst as their coach than Tucker, but they owe this guy 100 million dollars.
I bet those connected alumni loved him in 2020.
@Pikes Peak posted:I bet those connected alumni loved him in 2020.
Yes. They really thought they were locking up the next great coach and keeping him from Auburn, Florida, etc. They are still stung by the fact that Nick Saban jumped ship to go to LSU back in 1999 and didn't want it to happen again. It's funny that almost no one here really mentions that Tucker is actually a Wisconsin alum and played for Alvarez in the early 90s. It's all about the connections to Saban and then Kirby Smart.
The big thing everyone glossed over was how badly it had gone whenever Tucker ran something before. The first was the Bears defense in 2013 and 2014. They gave up 29.9 points per game in 2013 and 27.6 in 2014 (31st in the league both years). In Colorado in 2019, he went 5-7 but was 2-6 in his last 8 games.
He has a decent recruiting class coming in as freshman next year, but if MSU finishes this year at something like 5-8 they may be in big trouble in future recruiting, too. Their offense is very conservative and run-heavy, which causes the same problem in recruiting Wisconsin has (difficult to get the WRs you really need to compete at the highest level). They are already 2-3 and have at least 4 games where they'll be double digit underdogs to go (Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, and at Illinois).
I only listed Michigan State as they are spending money like crazy to support the football program.
Ohio State, and to a lesser extent Michigan are on a different level than Wisconsin. But UW should be comparable to Penn State and they aren’t.
I think what sealed PCs fate is it’s one thing to get drubbed by OSU or even Michigan, but BT teams in the West have all gotten better and closed the gap on Wisconsin. The Badgers haven’t won the West outright since 2017. They are 2-2 against Minnesota in their last four games. They’ve lost 2 games to the Illini over that stretch. Not a good trend line.
@Tschmack posted:I only listed Michigan State as they are spending money like crazy to support the football program.
Ohio State, and to a lesser extent Michigan are on a different level than Wisconsin. But UW should be comparable to Penn State and they aren’t.
I think what sealed PCs fate is it’s one thing to get drubbed by OSU or even Michigan, but BT teams in the West have all gotten better and closed the gap on Wisconsin. The Badgers haven’t won the West outright since 2017. They are 2-2 against Minnesota in their last four games. They’ve lost 2 games to the Illini over that stretch. Not a good trend line.
Agreed, and from a recruiting standpoint it's crucial for them to maintain the perception of superiority over Illinois, Northwestern, Minnesota, and Iowa than any other Big 10 teams. Wisconsin isn't every going to outrecruit OSU or Michigan, but they need to continue to recruit the 3-star (and a few 4-star) kids in Wisconsin to stay in the 8 win floor for wins/year. If Fleck and Bielema start beating Wisconsin for a lot of those kids, then we are back in the 80s. They have to build a wall around the state and keep the guys they want coming to Madison.
I think that they need a dynamic, relatable recruiter. The roster needs serious upgrading. Is JL that type of guy?
I honestly think one reason they didn’t just hand the reigns over long term to Jimmy Leonhard is just that - his effectiveness as a recruiter. Despite his impressive background, I don’t see him as having a dynamic personality. Perhaps he can become that guy, but he’s not there today.
It’s no secret Wisconsin has regressed in that area and right now they aren’t even in the top 50 for 2023 recruiting.
Here’s a hot take and it has nothing to do with Lance Leopold. I’m convinced if JL isn’t their guy the #1 target on their list should be Dave Aranda. He’s got instant credibility, knows the UW program, and recruits like a mofo. He knows how to find and add athletes to the roster and outside of a few guys like Braelon Allen the roster isn’t very good.
I came away pleasantly surprised with how the new AD took charge and made this move. That tells me he’s also not 100% sold on or convinced on JL. Now, if Leonhard does well this year perhaps he gets the gig long term but I don’t think McIntosh will simply give it to him nor should he.
I think (hope not) that the Aranda ship ha sailed. I would like him too .
I don't think they could hand Leonard the job. They have to post this job opening for a certain amount of time and then give everybody a shot at it. In most cases that's just going through the motions but no reason not to wait until the offseason anyway.
@Pikes Peak posted:I think that they need a dynamic, relatable recruiter. The roster needs serious upgrading. Is JL that type of guy?
Unfortunately, the best recruiters usually have a bit of greasiness to them. They have to go into each recruit's home and tell them they expect them to start at whatever position they are recruiting for and simultaneously convince multiple 17 year old kids that they are the most important player they are bringing in that year.
Guys like Bobby Petrino, Brian Kelly, Lane Kiffin, PJ Fleck, Lincoln Riley, Urban Meyer, etc. all have that ability to lie really well. Guys like Nick Saban and a few others get people on staff to help with that. The very thing that made players loyal to Chryst once they got here was that he seemed like a very genuine guy who couldn't play that game very well. I think Greg Gard has the same problem. I'd be worried Jim Leonhard would suffer from the same thing.
I'm sure I'm in the minority, but I'd rather win 8-9 games a year and occasionally have a big 11-12 win year than bring in a Kiffin or Meyer type and sell your soul to compete with the SEC and OSU. The problem you have to avoid is cratering to being a 5 win team each year, and that's what they have to avoid at all costs.
Why would Aranda leave Baylor? He just signed a new deal in February with what was likely a very big raise. He doesn’t have deep ties to Madison either.
Dave Doeren is another name being put out there, but he recently got a new deal for around Chryst money and new deals for his assistants.
Jimmy didn't even get a bump in pay for the new assignment, that is shitty
Baylor is not Wisconsin. Not even close.
Their athletic program has been decent, but they do not compare to a Wisconsin in terms of facilities and revenue generated. Especially if UW can get the new indoor football practice facility.
Baylor is also in a tough spot given how conference realignments are taking place and in Texas they will always be third fiddle compared to UT and A&M. They might even lag behind Texas Tech.
Baylor is sitting on a $2B endowment fund, they can do things.
They opened their $266m football stadium in 2014.
They will have options in the conference realignments with their TX ties.
@MichiganPacker posted:I'm sure I'm in the minority, but I'd rather win 8-9 games a year and occasionally have a big 11-12 win year than bring in a Kiffin or Meyer type and sell your soul to compete with the SEC and OSU. The problem you have to avoid is cratering to being a 5 win team each year, and that's what they have to avoid at all costs.
I am really on the fence with your thought. On one hand I agree that I would rather win 9-11 games every year and be happy if we beat our rivals and get a good bowl game. On the other hand I would kind of like it if they sold their soul to the devil to get a big name in there and go all in to compete with the likes of OSU. That of course is easier said than done but I think I would land on the side of let's at least try to go all in.
Paul Chryst was shockingly fired by Wisconsin football this past Sunday after a 2-3 start to the season. Chryst, who had been the Badgers’ coach since 2015, had compiled double-digit wins in his first three seasons, though the program has been trending downward since then. Still, it’s pretty surprising to see a coach who has never had a losing season at Wisconsin shown the door.
However, new details emerged about Chryst’s tenure with the Badgers, embarrassing ones that reveal why the university had no choice, per Jesse Temple of The Athletic.
“The lack of recruiting department hurt that heavily,” said another source familiar with Wisconsin’s recruiting. “They probably would’ve had Jimmy Rolder.”
Who is Jimmy Rolder, you’re asking? A linebacker who was tabbed as a player with “loads of potential” who visited Wisconsin football in 2021 as a potential recruit. There was just one problem. No one from the Badgers talked to Rolder because Paul Chryst didn’t have a recruiting department.
Employees, such as Wisconsin football’s director of player personnel, had left the program- and Chryst formed a “makeshift staff” rather than formally hiring a department of recruiters. It clearly hurt the Badgers’ chances of landing big-time recruits.
Then there’s this.
At halftime of the Illinois game, with Wisconsin trailing 14-10, Chryst told his players it was “time to draw a line in the f—ing sand,” to take a stand and rally. Wisconsin was held scoreless in the second half, gained 68 yards of total offense and surrendered 20 points. Torchio acknowledged after the game that “something’s off” with the team.”
Paul Chryst was attempting to rally the troops with a passionate, NSFW speech at halftime of this past Saturday’s loss to Illinois. But it fell on deaf ears, as Wisconsin football was blown out 34-10.
It’s a stretch to say that these two instances cost Paul Chryst his job, but they certainly didn’t help his case either.
(sorry for long post couldn’t copy article for some reason…..)