A historical college is facing closure, due their failing job placement, inflated grades and rumors that its nothing but a diploma mill.
The last chance for the new president to persuade to the education board that it could turn the ship around, plus get donations from the alumni is good showing on the upcoming math competition.
Since the homegrown talent is lacking, the president asks for help from his aunt who dabbles in voodoo. She promises to embody the spirits of great minds from the past, into the bodies of selected math team.
The only rule is they have to be dead for more then a century, the longer the better. And they wouldn't know anything they didn't know when they died, beside understanding of English. This is for story telling purposes.
Could geniuses of the past catch up in a few months?
My assumption is that he should bring people that are not that far in the past such as Euler, Gauss, Riemann, Descartes, Newton etc.
Older titans such as Euclid, Pythagoras, Fibonacci are too far behind from the modern knowledge.
I want something plausible, but my story is more on the funny side. I plan many funny sketches with 3rd rate math professor trying to teach modern knowledge to some of the greatest minds of the mankind.
Addendum
The geniuses will live and study in the university with the math professor which is their team coach fully at their disposal. The professor will adapt to their needs and knowledge. Meaning chalk and black board, not email and video lessons. Until & unless some of them want to learn in the new way. It's in interest of the math professor's and his colleagues to help them succeed, otherwise both the university and their jobs are lost.
The university buildings date centuries ago, and its not too different from what they've seen in the past.
Though the buildings have been upgraded with modern amenities such as electricity, running water, air conditioning, internet & computers.
So yes there would be culture shock, but hopefully it won't last too long.