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BADGERS’ QUARTERBACK DERBY After touching base with Todd Rice on Wilson’s charac- ter, what was the next step? “I got ahold of some tape (on Wilson) and tried to get a feel for him as a player,” Chryst said. “And with all those differ- ent avenues — people you have talked to, and things you have watched — you came away say- ing, `This is certainly worth pursuing.’” UW coach Bret Bielema then dispatched Chryst to Wilson’s high school in Richmond, Va. He talked to coaches and “peo- ple who had been around him” and got a feel for the environ- ment. “A big part of recruiting is knowing where they came from and knowing who they are,” Chryst said. “If it was going to happen and we did get him, we’d have a little more back- ground on who he is.” The next stage in Wilson’s re- cruitment was his campus visit to Madison. “It was the first chance to spend some time together,” Chryst said, “and it was impor- tant to put all the cards on the table and tell him what we’re doing (schematically) and what our vision is of offense. “It was really about getting to know each other and starting to develop a rapport.” Chryst had watched enough tape of Wilson to discuss the elements of his game — “his comfort levels” at NC State — that would transfer or be com- patible to what the Badgers are doing offensively. “One thing we’ve done a pretty good job of — no matter what the position — is identi- fying players’ skills and then fitting them into the offense,” Chryst said of the UW playbook and structure. “I’ve always believed a good offense adjusts to the players as opposed to making the player fit into the offense. What is an offense? It’s really an organiza- tion of terms. “We’ve got some concepts that we’ve carried over. But it’s fluid ... we don’t have a name for our offense. To me the play- ers define the offense; each year it’s different because the players are different.” “What is an offense? It’s really an organization of terms. “We’ve got some concepts that we’ve carried over, but it’s fluid ... we don’t have a name for our offense. “To me the players define the offense; each year it’s different because the players are different.” — Paul Chryst Chryst is a strong propo- nent of tweaking the offense to match the strength of his per- sonnel. That changes from year to year from position to posi- tion. That was part of the mes- sage that he delivered. “You wanted him to get an accurate picture of who we are; the vision of where we want to go,” he said. “I told him, as I tell every recruit, it’s your job to see if it’s a fit and you want to be a part of it.” Did Chryst feel good about the UW’s chances at the end of Wilson’s visit? “Yeah, I did,” he said, adding that he felt that way from the