BADGERS’ QUARTERBACK DERBY
Jon Budmayr bats.”
Wilson, of course, was a for- mer fourth-round draft choice of the Colorado Rockies. “It will be interesting because I haven’t been with him on the field,” said Chryst, who has been unable to get a true feel for Wilson, the quarterback, be- cause of NCAA summer contact rules.
“He’s going to have to rely on the experience that he has gained,” he continued. “What we do know is that he’s a guy who has started X-amount of games in college football. “He throws the ball effec- tively and he’s got good football intelligence. I’m anxious to spent time with him — to get to know him — and for him to get to know our guys.”
Chryst pointed out Wilson’s on-field orientation will be in “conjunction with what we’re trying to accomplish for the whole unit” on offense. The
“To me his stock has risen,” Chryst said, `’because his focus is on the right things. I think the world of Jon. How he handled it speaks volumes for who he is; that makes him that much more of a special guy.”
Badgers will practice once a day the first five days.
That will allow for some meeting time, Chryst said, and “the bulk of our installation.” The second week, he said, “There’s not as much teach- ing; you’re trying to refine the execution.” By then, things should begin crystallizing to whatever degree. “Russell has played a lot of foot- ball, but he’s going to need a ton of reps on our stuff,” Chryst
said. “Jon has earned the right for a lot of reps and there are some things that we can do to continue to develop and bring along Joey (Brennan, a redshirt freshman) and Joel (Stave, a true freshman).”
On Budmayr and Wilson, Chryst said, “Both will get reps with the ones and both will get reps with the twos. They’ll know what to expect and won’t have to worry about hidden mes- sages.”
Chryst doesn’t want any of his quarterbacks “stressed about competition” in training camp.
“The true competition is with yourself,” he said. “You want to be the best that you can be and that goes across the board at all positions. Everything will then kind of sort itself out. “My goal is to get Jon and Russell not only game-ready, but season-ready.”
