'Perfect' opportunity

Andy Ludwig jumped at the chance to come back to Utah.

The Utes' new offensive coordinator, a former graduate assistant who played football at Bonneville High School and Snow College, left a similar post in the Pacific-10 Conference to join Kyle Whittingham's staff.

"I wanted to work with Kyle. I thought it was the right time and the right place to leave the University of Oregon for," said Ludwig. "I've got great respect for the people up there — for coach (Mike) Bellotti and the football I learned — but I needed a change and this is the perfect set-up."

Unlike his tenure with the Ducks, where he learned and ran an inherited offense, Ludwig was given a blank canvas at Utah.

"Coach Whittingham has just said 'install your offense' and 'do what you want to do,' " said Ludwig, who was Fresno State's offensive coordinator when quarterback David Carr became the National Football League's top draft pick in 2002.

Whittingham, who worked alongside Ludwig as an assistant coach at Idaho State from 1989-91, wasted little time hiring his former colleague.

"Andy has an excellent track record as an offensive coordinator," Whittingham said when making the announcement in December. ". . . He has done well everywhere he has been."

Before rejoining the Utah staff, Ludwig coached at Augustana (a Division II school in South Dakota), Boise State, Cal Poly, Fresno State and Oregon. Ludwig began his coaching career at his alma mater, Portland State, where current Auburn offensive coordinator Al Borges helped him get started.

"I told Al, 'I think I want to be a coach,' and he was gracious enough to give me some guidance, some direction and let me get my foot in the door," said Ludwig, who worked with the Vikings' receivers for two seasons before moving on to Pocatello. "I liked it. It's my passion and I've got a knack for it. So I gave it a go."

Ludwig has spent the past 18 years coaching college football. In 2001, he was a finalist for the Broyles Award as one the nation's top assistant coaches. Fresno State's offense ranked fourth in the nation that season in both scoring and total offense.

"We enjoyed a lot of success, then I had another opportunity up in Oregon," said Ludwig. "I felt like that was a job I had to take when it was offered to me."

Ludwig was tabbed to replace Jeff Tedford, who became the head coach at California. After three seasons in Eugene, where he was eventually replaced by former BYU head coach Gary Crowton, Ludwig accepted Whittingham's offer.