Paul Chryst fired: Who are the Badgers’ top coaching candidates?

2. Lance Leipold, Kansas head coach

Leipold seems to be an early favorite for the Badgers’ head-coaching vacancy should the program look to go in a different direction than what it has in-house. While Leipold has also been linked to the Nebraska job early in the season, his Wisconsin roots could make the Badgers job more enticing. A native of Jefferson, Wisconsin, Leipold was a quarterback for Division III Wisconsin-Whitewater in the 1980s. His coaching career began as an assistant at his alma mater, and he did spend the early 1990s in Madison as well as a graduate assistant for the Badgers. After stops as an assistant at both Nebraska and Nebraska-Omaha, Leipold returned to Whitewater where he turned the Warhawks into one of the most dominant football programs at the DIII level. In his eight seasons as head coach, Leipold went an incredible 109-6, a stretch that included 46 consecutive victories at one point. Also a six-time coach of the year, Leipold led Whitewater to six Division III national championships in his eight seasons at the helm, and became the fastest in NCAA history to reach 100 career wins. 

Wis-Whitewater HC Lance Leipold reached 100 wins faster than any other coach in NCAA history http://t.co/8uWMeCgSP7 pic.twitter.com/5DNSakiUgI

— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) October 19, 2014

Following a successful stint at Buffalo as he made the jump to Division I, Leipold earned a Power 5 job with Kansas. The Jayhawks went just 2-10 in his first season last year, but Leipold has the Jayhawks off to a 5-0 start in 2022. Following a win over Iowa State this past weekend, Kansas is now ranked No. 19 in the AP poll, the first time the Jayhawks have been ranked since 2009. Leipold’s success at every stop is something that will be intriguing to any program with an opening, but his ties to Wisconsin could make the Badgers a perfect situation come 2023.