Paul Chryst > Todd Graham According To Stewart Mandel

by CardiacHill on Jan 19, 2026 8:01 AM EST in Pitt Football

I promise at some point that the Todd Graham stuff will die down. But as long as it's in the news, as a Pitt site, it's worth at least a mention.

Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated has his coaching hire grades and while he loves Pitt's pickup of Paul Chryst, he can't say the same for Arizona State chasing Graham.

Mandel says Pitt finally got it right with Chryst:

Pittsburgh (Paul Chryst, Wisconsin offensive coordinator): A-

On the third try, Pitt got it right. The soft-spoken Madison native had a tremendous impact on the Badgers, particularly their quarterbacks, a sore spot for the Panthers the past several years. His smash-mouth approach fits well in the Steel City, and it helps that he's bringing renowned offensive line coach Bob Bostad with him.

If you've been reading this blog, you know I'm well on board with the Chryst hire and I think it's clearly the best of the three they've made in the last year or so.

But Stewie wasn't a fan of ASU's foray into the Todd Graham era:

Arizona State (Todd Graham, Pittsburgh head coach): D

Forget the unseemly way he exited Pitt. Why exactly is Graham is a hot commodity to begin with? It's certainly not due to his one 6-6 Big East season. He had three 10-win seasons at Tulsa, but much of the credit belongs to respected offensive coordinators Gus Malzahn and Chad Morris. His one season without either, he went 5-7. But perhaps his fourth dream job in six years will be the one.

I continue to be amazed that Graham remains such a clown in the eyes of the national media. Locally, I get it, but man - he's been getting killed by the national guys as well. A lot of that probably had to do with the Twitter reactions, most notably those of Devin Street.

Still, it's shocking that the Graham bashing hasn't quit.

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Comments

Agreed

I am also totally stunned at the negative national publicity that Fraud has been getting. I have never seen a coach get so much bashing, and it seems like everyone in college football has weighed in on this. I mean, countless editorial articles have been devoted to it from the biggest national sports reporting agencies. I have a feeling that Fraud’s reputation is so shot right now that I think it will kill his recruiting at ASU.

I will say that I do think Pitt is better in the long haul with Paul Chryst than with Fraud. And I agree Stewart Mandel, Fraud was only as good as his offensive coordinators let him. I will take the combo of Chryst and Bostad over Fraud any day. You have proven results there - especially with that killer offensive line.

by PittGuy on Jan 20, 2026 8:36 PM EST reply actions