Paul Chryst was the offensive coordinator at Wisconsin in 2011 when the Badgers signed a two-star recruit out of Greenfield, Wis., named Joel Stave.
Chryst left in 2012 to coach at the University of Pittsburgh. Upon returning to Madison three years later to replace Gary Andersen as head coach of the Badgers, Chryst reconnected with Stave, who after redshirting as a freshman had grown up, played 31 games in three years and become an NFL prospect.
“It was fun to see how he had matured, and certainly Joel went through a lot from his freshman year to his fifth year,” Chryst said this week of Stave, now a rookie quarterback for the Vikings.