Wisconsin football: Players discuss the firing of Paul Chryst

A group of six team leaders from the Wisconsin Badgers football team talk about the dismissal of Paul Chryst and preview their upcoming game with Northwestern.

The news and emotions surrounding Paul Chryst's firing as head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers are still very fresh and on the minds of the football team. 

After hearing from Athletic Director Chris McIntosh and interim head coach Jim Leonhard on Sunday evening, a handful of players finally had the chance to publicly share their feelings about the move Wednesday in a press conference of their own. 

Quarterback Graham Mertz, nose tackle Keeanu Benton, safety John Torchio, running back Braelon Allen, wide receiver Chimere Dike, and outside linebacker Nick Herbig each had the chance to talk about their reaction to the news and the choice to name Leonhard the head coach for the remainder of the season.

Here is an overview of what each player had to say earlier today:

Safety John Torchio on Chryst's firing

"I don't think anyone saw it coming," Torchio stated. "I thought we as players would execute better and perform better [this season], and we haven't, and that's on us as players. But, I would answer for all of us that we are all shocked and none of us thought we would ever be in this situation this season, or at this point of the season.

Quarterback Graham Mertz on hearing the news

"I'd say initial, first day, I was shocked. I mean obviously, I've got a great relationship [with Paul Chryst] and I mean I can speak for anybody that's played under coach [Chryst] or coached with him. I mean just the type of man he is, you want to play for him," Mertz said. "He's so down to earth and he always wants the best for his players, so obviously have a great relationship, will forever have a great relationship with him."

Mertz would later state, "anytime you go through something as a family, I mean you all feel some responsibility. I don't think this should at all fall on anybody, any one person's shoulders, and I think that's why this group is upset." Mertz would later go on to say that the group "needs to use that [anger] as fuel."

Running back Braelon Allen on the situation

"Obviously the situation is not easy and nobody wanted to see coach Chryst go, so I think for me personally it's fuel," Braelon Allen said. "It's really on us. You know, we didn't execute, we didn't play the football we needed to play, and this is a consequence of that. So I guess moving forward, kind of got to use it as fuel as coach Leonhard has said, and kind of put your head down and keep moving forward."

Nose tackle Keeanu Benton on going forward

"We were kind of hard on ourselves as leaders because this is not the outcome that we wanted in the first few games we had," Benton said. "But as leaders of this group, we can't hang our heads too low, or we can't be too high at times. We've got to stay consistent, so I feel like that's what we are working on, is staying consistent and making sure every one of our teammates got the leaders to fall back on when they need to." 

Benton, a senior, would later say, "coach Leonhard has not failed to reiterate to us that when we are away, you can grieve and do what you need to do, but when you're between those white lines you've got to focus. So I feel like our guys have done a great job of that these past couple of days, and we hope to bring it into Saturday as well."

Outside linebacker Nick Herbig on Paul Chryst's impact

"Coach Chryst has been my head coach since I stepped foot on this campus. He's a mentor, he is one of my best friends, he's a guy I look up to. I know all the guys in the locker room miss him, all the coaches miss him."

Wide receiver Chimere Dike on the coaching change

"Obviously all of us love coach Chryst, but we trust our leadership to put us in positions as student-athletes to succeed." 

Outside linebacker Nick Herbig on Jim Leonhard's message

"We are still playing for coach Chryst. Like this is still his team, we are still his guys. He still loves us, we still love him, but I mean at this point we just need to put all our energy and focus on Saturday."

Safety John Torchio on Jim Leonhard

"His schematic knowledge for football is pretty impressive, and I'd say is second to none in the country," Torchio noted. "He's a great leader, guys on this team respect him, so I think that's what makes him a good coach."

You can watch more from player availability below...

Related links:

• Depth chart and injury report for Wisconsin against Northwestern
• Paul Chryst's top-10 moments as head coach at Wisconsin
• Wisconsin football versus Northwestern by the numbers

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