Report: Paul Chryst a Finalist for Coordinator Job With Big Ten Rival

November 2, 2024, is a date that Wisconsin football fans might want to circle on their schedule because Paul Chryst could be on the opposing sidelines for a ‘revenge game’ when the Badgers travel to Iowa City to take on the Hawkeyes next season. 

BadgerNotes.com first reported that coach Chryst was emerging as a potential top target for Kirk Ferentz and the Iowa Hawkeyes to fill the offensive coordinator vacancy. 

Now, Scott Dochterman of The Athletic has seemingly re-affirmed that prospect, suggesting in a recent report that the current Texas Longhorns offensive analyst and former Wisconsin Badgers head coach is a ‘finalist’ for the Iowa role alongside Joe Philbin. 

Former Wisconsin Football Coach Paul Chryst Named a Finalist for Iowa Offensive Coordinator Job.

UW head coach Paul Chryst
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A potential Paul Chryst and Kirk Ferentz marriage would make sense. The two coaches share a mutual respect for one another and have closely aligning philosophies that, on paper, would appear to be a perfect fit.

Chryst led the Wisconsin football program for seven seasons and had plenty of success in the Big Ten. He had four 10+ win seasons, two finishes inside the top 10, and won two Big Ten Coach of the Year awards.

Not to mention, Chryst has a career head coaching record of 86-45 from his time with Pitt and the Badgers while compiling a stellar 7-2 record in bowl games, including notable wins in the Cotton and Orange Bowls.

If not a head coaching gig at this point in his career, it’s hard to imagine Chryst finding a better situation than Iowa, where there’s nowhere to go but up after finishing dead last in the country in total offense (239.3 YPG).

While Chryst’s direct on-field influence as an analyst might not be quantifiable from this past season at Texas, his behind-the-scenes role presumably had a positive impact on the Longhorns offense. The mix of what he’s learned at Texas and the style he was so successful with at UW could help Iowa’s offense find some level of competence in 2024.

It would be tough for Wisconsin football fans to see Paul Chryst coaching for Iowa on the opposing sidelines. But if Chryst deems that this is the best fit for where he’s at in his career, Badgers fans will quietly hope he does well enough to vault himself into another head coaching gig in 2025.

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