Embarrassing Report Paints Unflattering Picture Of Paul Chryst's Recruiting At Wisconsin

It sounds like Paul Chryst made some poor recruiting decisions towards the end of his time with the Wisconsin Badgers.

The Badgers fired Paul Chryst after a 34-10 loss to Illinois last Saturday, and while the move might have shocked a lot of people, the most loyal fans could see the writing on the wall.

Now, a new report from The Athletic paints a troubling picture of how the recruiting situation was behind closed doors.

Wisconsin fired Paul Chryst after the Badgers lost to Illinois. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

Wisconsin had recruiting issues under Paul Chryst.

For eight months, Wisconsin more or less didn't have a recruiting staff after director of player personnel Saeed Khalif left for Michigan State, according to The Athletic. Chryst put together "what amounted to a makeshift staff" for recruiting, and it led to at least one disastrous situation.

When Michigan player Jimmy Rolder visited Madison as a recruit, the situation was so disorganized nobody even apparently knew he was there.

"No one talked to him. No one knew who he was or anything about him," an unnamed source told The Athletic. Rolder eventually landed at Michigan, where he's having a very nice freshman season.

Wisconsin fired Paul Chryst after he went 67-26. The Badgers lost 34-10 to Illinois. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

Eventually, Chryst was able to try to stabilize the recruiting situation prior to the 2022 campaign, but this report is just the latest blow to the program. Wisconsin already has enough recruiting issues due to the school's geographic location and high school talent in the region. We don't need to make things harder.

The situation also does go to show how much things have slipped over the past few years. Wisconsin went from dominating the Big Ten West to not having a recruiting department for the majority of a year. That's a massive slide, and Chris McIntosh and fans had seen enough.

Why did Wisconsin fire Paul Chryst? Will Jim Leonhard be the permanent coach? (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

The good news is Chryst is gone, and there's a new era in Madison with Jim Leonhard as the interim. The restart button has been smashed, and it's time to roll Saturday against Northwestern.