Marian grad Jon Budmayr calls offensive coordinator job at Colorado State ‘the right fit’

The bond that Jon Budmayr and Wisconsin football coach Paul Chryst forged over the last 12 years was extraordinary.

Budmayr, a 2009 Marian Central graduate, went to Wisconsin to play quarterback when Chryst was the Badgers offensive coordinator. They have been together as player and coach, or coach and coach, for 10 of the past 12 years, so it was going to take something special to draw Budmayr away from Madison.

Budmayr feels like he found that last month in Fort Collins, Colorado, with Colorado State coach Steve Addazio, who wanted Budmayr to become the Rams offensive coordinator.

“It had to be the right fit,” Budmayr said. “It had to be the right people and the right opportunity to leave. When I got out here on my interview, it didn’t take me long to realize that this was that opportunity.”

During a Zoom news conference last week at Colorado State, both Addazio and Budmayr mentioned multiple times about how their offensive philosophies aligned. Budmayr, who worked two college seasons (one at Pittsburgh, one at Wisconsin, both with Chryst as head coach), two seasons as quality control coach at Wisconsin and the last three as the Badgers quarterbacks coach, now gets to run his own offense at age 30.

“I just think he’s a sharp guy,” Addazio said. “You meet Jon, he has the common touch. He’s really good with people. He’s very easy to relate to and he’s an excellent teacher.

“For us at Colorado State, one of the good things is we’re able to hire really good young coaches who are on the cusp, in this profession, of being rising stars. When people pluck your coaches, that tells you that you hired good guys.”

Budmayr, his wife Kaitlyn and their baby girl Sienna are getting acclimated to Fort Collins and their new football family.

Chryst, who was teammates at Wisconsin with 1985 Marian graduate Andy Hartlieb, Budmayr’s father-in-law, felt the timing was right for Budmayr to take on a bigger job.

“It’s a great chance for him to take a lot of what he has learned and worked on and apply it in a little different way and broader scope,” Chryst told Mike Lucas of UWBadgers.com.

While Budmayr’s is relatively young for an NCAA Division I coordinator, he always was ahead of the curve. He started at Marian as a freshman quarterback and helped the Hurricanes to the 2006 Class 5A state championship game as a sophomore.

A broken collarbone sidelined Budmayr in his senior season at Marian and other injuries limited his college career, but he kept learning with Chryst.

“I’ve been very fortunate to be able to learn under really good coaches, Paul being one of them,” Budmayr said. “He’s helped me prepare to be at this spot. Being around a football family, my mom (Jackie, basketball) and dad (Rick, football), my dad was a high school (assistant) coach for a long time, so being around the game and being exposed to it, my knowledge was at a decent level. Those things really help.

“The people you get to learn from are huge. They prepare you for this opportunity. The biggest thing is coach Addazio believing in me. He had a vision for this position and we aligned on that vision.”

Addazio felt like the Rams and Badgers had several offensive similarities, and that Budmayr would be an ideal fit. Former offensive coordinator Joey Lynch was hired this offseason.

“We have a philosophy and we look for people to enhance that,” Addazio said. “With (Budmayr) and (new wide receivers coach) Alex (Bailey), we can get better. Better on the perimeter, better on third downs, better in the passing game.

“I’m a big believer in coaching trees and how you’ve been mentored and developed in this game. Jon had a chance to work under Paul Chryst, who has one of the better passing minds in the country. (Budmayr) has a great sense, as a quarterback himself, of coaching quarterbacks in the passing game.”

The Rams were 1-3 in a fall season cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. Tight end Trey McBride, an NFL prospect, chose to return for next season after leading the Rams with 22 receptions and their only four receiving touchdowns.

Budmayr has been reviewing video, meeting with players and soon will get a better read as spring football is scheduled to start on Feb. 27.

Moving up to a coordinator position was another reason Budmayr was attracted to Colorado State.

“That’s a natural step in the progression of the profession,” he said. “At the same time, it wasn’t just going to be anywhere. That’s important to me. I did value my time at Wisconsin, I had a great relationship with Paul Chryst and learned a ton from him and the coaches on that staff.

“It wasn’t just going to be anywhere to chase a coordinator job. It had to be the right fit and that’s what I saw right away with coach Addazio. Not only did I see an opportunity to grow in the profession and coordinate, and take on a new challenge for me, but an opportunity to learn and grow with (Addazio).”