Paul Chryst wanted to dispel the myth of Wisconsin’s tough academic standards by joking that if he could graduate from the university, any of his players could accomplish the same feat.

"I got a degree from Wisconsin. It's not like you have to be a rocket scientist," Chryst said during a meeting of the state chamber of commerce Wednesday.

Wisconsin’s academic standards were thrust into the spotlight earlier this year when former coach Gary Andersen said they were the reason he decided to abruptly leave the program and become the head coach at Oregon State.

"It's been well [documented] there were some kids I couldn't get in school," Andersen told CBS Sports. "That was highly frustrating to me. I lost some guys, and I told them I wasn't going to lose them.

"I think they did what they were supposed to do [academically] and they still couldn't get in. That was really hard to deal with."

Wisconsin’s academic standards are higher than Nebraska, Ohio State and Michigan State, three schools with which the Badgers compete for recruits. Wisconsin requires incoming freshman to have 17 units of "core college preparatory" classes, which include four years of English, three years of math, three years of natural science, three years of social science and then another four electives, which could be a foreign language, a fine art, computer science or a range of other offerings.

Nebraska and Michigan State only require 14 core units, with the extra coming in the form of another math class. Ohio State requires 16 core units.



Oregon State’s academic requirements mirror Wisconsin's 13 core unites, but require just two units of a foreign language.

Chryst, who played quarterback for the Badgers, graduated with a degree in political science in 1988 and earned a master's degree in educational administration from the University of West Virginia.

Chryst was adamant that Wisconsin’s higher educational standards were not a hindrance, but rather an endorsement for the school.

"I've been asked this quite a bit, about the high standards academically," Chryst said. "I think that's one of the things that separates Wisconsin from a lot of places. ... Everything we do in the program is to help them get a meaningful degree."

For more Wisconsin news, visit BadgerBlitz.com.

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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday

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