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Paul Chryst talks about return of Wisconsin OL Jon Dietzen
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Some surprising news hit the B1G this week when Wisconsin released its updated roster for the 2020 season.
Offensive lineman Jon Dietzen, who stepped away from football following the 2018 season due to injuries, was back on the roster. After a one-year absence, the Badgers welcomed the multi-year starter back to the lineup to provide depth and experience along the front line for the 2020 season.
Asked about Dietzen’s return, head coach Paul Chryst told reporters that the offensive lineman is much better from an injury standpoint than when he decided to walk away from football.
Per Jeff Potrykus of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Chryst says Dietzen is as healthy as he’s ever been and is excited to be back on the field. However, there are some concerns regarding how the lineman’s body will handle the return of the daily grind, particularly with padded practices resuming.
#Badgers coach Paul Chryst on Jon Dietzen: Says Dietzen is as healthy as he has ever been and is excited to be back. The real test will be how his body handles the grind of consecutive practices, a full practice week and the grind of the season.
— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) September 23, 2020
Dietzen has played in 35 career games for the Badgers along the front lines, making 32 starts. He appeared in all 25 of Wisconsin’s games during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, starting in all but one contest.
His return is big for the Badgers in terms of depth and experience, but it’ll be interesting to see if he carves out a starting spot after a year away from the game. Either way, Chryst is happy to have a player with 35 games under his belt back on the roster.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB