Be Thankful For Paul Chryst

Unassuming. Bland. Boring. A winner.

University of Wisconsin Badger football coach Paul Chryst is all of these. But he does things "The Wisconsin Way" and that's just fine with us.

Since taking the Wisconsin job in 2015, Chryst's team have gone 62-19. That's a winning percentage of .765. During that stretch, the Badgers won the Holiday, Cotton, Orange and Pinstripe bowl games -- and this year SHOULD have closed out the Rose Bowl with a win instead of falling 28-27. Bucky was clearly the better team on the field, but was uncharacteristic in committing turnovers and penalties at crucial times.

The only game in which Wisconsin was truly blown out this year came on Oct. 26th at Ohio State, a 38-7 loss. Otherwise, the defeats at Illinois, the Big Ten title game with Ohio State and the Rose Bowl were all winnable.

The one real Achilles' heel for Bucky this season, in my opinion, was special teams. Let's face it, Wisconsin punters just didn't cut it. I find it interesting that BOTH All-Big Ten punters, chosen by the Associated Press, hail from Melbourne, Australia.....Blake Hayes, Illinois junior was first team while Rutgers junior Adam Korsak (featured in a Sports Illustrated piece) was second team. Maybe it's time for Chryst & Co. to head Down Under to recruit a strong leg from an Australian Rules Football roster.

Wisconsin loses some studs at linebacker through graduation, and four players have announced they will leave early

• RB Jonathan Taylor, who's exit is totally understandable. Sure it would be nice if he came back, but running backs only have so many carries in them. Leaving for the NFL and a salary was expected.
• C Taylor Biadasz, probably the best interior lineman in the draft
• WR Quintez Cephus, a surprise in a draft that is wide receiver heavy
• WR Aaron Cruickshank, who REALLY surprised Badger Nation by entering the transfer portal. Despite his success as a kick returner and his explosiveness, he may well have looked around the receiver room and decided he wouldn't get a chance.

No matter. Wisconsin will reload at linebacker, the O-Line and running back. In fact, a four-star runner from New Jersey, Jalen Berger, committed to the Badgers.A solid all-around runner who is 6-foot, 205-pounds, picked UW from a final five that included LSU, Penn State, UCLA and Rutgers. He's the fifth four-star recruit to join the Badgers. It's rare for Wisconsin to get those four-stars, so it shows that this program is in good hands.