Paul Joseph Chryst (born November 17, 1965) is a former American football head coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach for the

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin). They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivisi ...

. Chryst was the head coach at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

from 2012 to 2014. Prior to his head coaching career, Chryst had previously been the

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach re ...

at Wisconsin from 2005 through 2011. He also served in the same capacity at

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering co ...

and was an assistant coach for the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. Chryst played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, where he lettered as a quarterback and tight end from 1986 to 1988.

Early life

The son of a

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

coach, Chryst was born and raised in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

. The family moved to

Platteville, Wisconsin Platteville is the largest city in Grant County in southwestern Wisconsin. The population was 11,836 at the 2020 census, up from 11,224 at the 2010 census. Much of this growth is likely due to the enrollment increase of the University of Wi ...

, when his father, the late

George Chryst George Chryst (April 30, 1937 – December 3, 1992) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville from 1979 to 1992. He was the father of three sons who became involve ...

, became the head football coach at the

University of Wisconsin–Platteville University of Wisconsin–Platteville (UW–Platteville) is a public university in Platteville, Wisconsin. Part of the University of Wisconsin System, it offers bachelor's and master's degrees. The university has three colleges that serve over ...

in 1979. Chryst attended

Platteville High School Platteville High School is the only high school in the Platteville School District in Platteville, Wisconsin. Platteville High School has accumulated more Southwest Wisconsin Conference championships than any other school in the conference. ...

, where he was a three-time letterman in football and basketball, and also lettered in baseball and track. As the starting

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

, he led the 1982 and 1983 Hillmen to consecutive Southern Eight Conference titles and the Wisconsin Division 4 state championship in 1983. Chryst graduated from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

in 1988 with a degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

, and was a two-time football letter winner at the quarterback and tight end position for the Badgers. He added a master's degree in educational administration from West Virginia in 1990.

Coaching career

Paul Chryst started his career as a graduate assistant at West Virginia (1989–90), and was then an assistant coach for the World League's

San Antonio Riders The San Antonio Riders were a professional American football team that played in the WLAF in 1991 and 1992. The team played at Alamo Stadium in San Antonio in 1991 and then were forced to move to Bobcat Stadium on the campus of Southwest Texas S ...

(1991–92), UW–Platteville (1993),

Ottawa Rough Riders The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. Formerly one of the oldest and longest-lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine ...

(1994),

Illinois State Illinois State University (ISU) is a Public university, public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is reco ...

(1995),

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...

(1996), and

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...

(1997–98). He was the

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

s coach for the NFL's

from 1999 to 2001, where he was instrumental in the development of

Freddie Jones Frederick Charles Jones''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916-2005.''; at ancestry.com (12 September 1927 – 9 July 2019) was an English actor who had an extensive career in television, theatre and cinema productions for a ...

into one of the NFL's top

s, as well as coaching Steve Heiden, who eventually started with the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

. Chryst was

and quarterbacks coach at Oregon State in 2003–04. The Beavers ranked 10th nationally in total offense (463.0 ypg) and 6th nationally in passing yardage per game (328.1) in 2003. The 2003 Beavers became the first team in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

history with a 4,000-yard passer, 1,500-yard rusher and two 1,000-yard receivers. Among the Oregon State stars he coached were RB

Ken Simonton Ken Simonton III (born June 7, 1979) is a former American football running back who last played in the CFL for the Calgary Stampeders after a brief career in the NFL and the NFL Europe. Early life Simonton's family has a history of baseball. H ...

, the school's career rushing leader, QB Derek Anderson, who left as the

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

's No. 2 career passing leader, and RB Steven Jackson, a 2004 first-round draft choice for the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...

. After a one-year stint as the Badgers' tight ends coach in 2002, Chryst returned to Wisconsin in 2005 and under his direction, the Wisconsin offense showed immediate and drastic improvement. The 2005 team set school records for both scoring average (34.3 ppg) and for points scored in a season (446). UW scored at least 40 points six times in 2005. After ending the 2005 season with a 10–3 record, the 2006 offense was again potent under Chryst, and helped the team to a strong 12–1 finish. Chryst's strong offenses helped guide Wisconsin to back-to-back Rose Bowl appearances in 2010 and 2011. Chryst was a 2011 finalist for the

Broyles Award The Broyles Award is an annual award given to honor the best assistant coach in college football. First awarded in 1996, it was named after former University of Arkansas men's athletic director Frank Broyles. The award is presented in Little R ...

, given annually to the nation's top college football assistant coach.

University of Pittsburgh

Chryst was hired as the head football coach at the University of Pittsburgh on December 22, 2011. Chryst had a record of 19–19 before being offered the head coaching position at Wisconsin. He won the Little Caesar's Bowl during the 2013 season.

University of Wisconsin

On December 17, 2014, Chryst was introduced as the head coach at Wisconsin following the departure of

Gary Andersen Gary Lee Andersen (born February 19, 1964) is an American football coach who was most recently head football coach at Utah State University. Andersen has also been the head football coach of Southern Utah (2003), Wisconsin (2013–2014), and Or ...

. In Chryst's first season, the Badgers went 10–3 and finished 1st nationally in scoring defense (13.7 points per game) and 2nd in total defense (268.5 yards per game). All three losses came to teams that were in the

AP top 25 The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broadca ...

at the end of the season, eventual national champions #1

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

, #9

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

and #23 Northwestern. Chryst also won the

Holiday Bowl The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played in San Diego since 1978. San Diego County Credit Union has been the game's title sponsor since 2017, and the bowl has b ...

against

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

, whom the Badgers had a 0–6 record against before the game, with their last meeting being in 1965 at the Colosseum in Los Angeles. In the opening game of the 2016 season, the unranked Badgers upset #5 LSU at

Lambeau Field Lambeau Field is an outdoor athletic stadium in the north central United States, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The home field of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), it opened in 1957 as City Stadium, replacing ...

. Following the opening week of college football when the new

AP Poll The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broadca ...

was released the Badgers were ranked #10, the highest the Badgers had been ranked since the 2011 season where Chryst was the offensive coordinator for the

Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played his first 10 seasons for the Seattle Seahawks. Wilson is widely regarded ...

-led Wisconsin team. On November 29, 2016, Chryst was named the Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year in the Big Ten Conference. Despite the Badgers going 12–1 in 2017, Wisconsin was held out of the College Football Playoff. However, they beat Miami in the 2017 Orange Bowl. In 2021 the Badgers started with a dismal 1-3 record, before starting a 7-game win streak. At 8-3 they needed to beat Minnesota to clinch the Big 10 West, but ended up losing 13-23. On one possession, Chryst elected to punt instead of going for it, even though they were down 10 midway through the fourth quarter. The Badgers finished the season with a record of 9-4 with a 20-13 victory over Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl. Chryst was fired on October 2, 2022, after the Badgers started the 2022 season 2–3 (0–2 Big Ten). He finished at Wisconsin with an overall record of 67–26 (), and 43–18 () in Big Ten play.

Personal life

Chryst and his wife, Robin, have three children, daughters Katy and JoJo, and son Danny. He is the brother of former

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twel ...

commissioner Rick Chryst and former

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

offensive coordinator

Geep Chryst George Patrick "Geep" Chryst (born June 25, 1962) is an American football coach & scout, currently a Pro Scout for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Previously he served as the tight ends coach and offensive coordinator for the California Golden Bears. ...

. His nephews

Keller Chryst Keller Joseph Chryst (born November 17, 1995) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Tennessee and Stanford. Early years Chryst attended Weddington High School in Weddington, North Carolina for his freshman ye ...

and Jackson Chryst play football. Keller played quarterback for

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

while Jackson is also a quarterback at

University of Wisconsin Whitewater A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

Wisconsin profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chryst, Paul 1965 births Living people American football quarterbacks Illinois State Redbirds football coaches Oregon State Beavers football coaches Ottawa Rough Riders coaches Pittsburgh Panthers football coaches San Antonio Riders coaches San Diego Chargers coaches Saskatchewan Roughriders coaches West Virginia Mountaineers football coaches Wisconsin Badgers football coaches Wisconsin Badgers football players Wisconsin–Platteville Pioneers football coaches People from Platteville, Wisconsin Sportspeople from Madison, Wisconsin Coaches of American football from Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin