Utah offensive analyst Mike Bajakian will serve as Utah’s interim offensive coordinator, head coach Kyle Whittingham said Monday.
The move comes after former Utes offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig resigned from his position on Sunday night.
Bajakian, who joined the Utes as an offensive analyst this season, is expected to take over play-calling duties following Ludwig’s departure. The River Vale, New Jersey, native was previously the offensive coordinator at Northwestern from 2020-23 before being fired at the end of last season.
“Mike Bajakian will be the interim offensive coordinator through the rest of the season,” Whittingham said. “After the season, we’ll evaluate where we are and press forward beyond that, depending on what the circumstances are.
“He comes with a strong resume and has been a playcaller for a lot of years. He was, based on the circumstances and the situation we’re in, the obvious choice to finish out the season with. We’ll reevaluate at the end of the season and decide what direction we’re going to.”
Whittingham said he spoke with Ludwig, who began his second stint as the Utes’ offensive coordinator in 2019, on Sunday night.
“Andy Ludwig, of his own volition, has decided to step down as the offensive coordinator,” Whittingham said. “I can’t say enough good things about Andy, as far as our relationship [and] what he’s meant to this program. We go way back 30-plus years. I consider him a close friend. He’s a tremendous offensive coordinator. We won a bunch of games and championships together. He will be missed.”
(Brian Cassella | Chicago Tribune via AP) Northwestern quarterback Brendan Sullivan (6) throws in front of former offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian during football practice Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2023, at Hutcheson Field in Evanston, Ill. Northwestern athletic director Derrick Gragg criticized assistant football coaches and staff members for wearing shirts supporting fired coach Pat Fitzgerald at practice Wednesday, calling them “inappropriate, offensive and tone deaf” given the hazing and abuse scandal that had engulfed the program and other teams.
Bajakian coached under former Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald, who was fired in July 2023 after an investigation found there was widespread hazing on the team.
Bajakian generated negative headlines before the start of the 2023 season after being seen wearing “Cats against the World” shirts during fall camp in support of Fitzgerald.
He sued Northwestern in July, claiming the school’s handling of Fitzgerald’s case cast him and others in a “false and misleading light” that prevented him from getting a comparable job.
Before his time at Northwestern, the interim Utes offensive coordinator had stops at Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Tennessee, and Boston College. Bajakian also spent time in the NFL coaching with the Chicago Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Utah (4-3, 1-3 Big 12), which is reeling amid a three-game losing streak, is set to take on Houston (2-5, 1-3) at 5 p.m. MT this Saturday in Houston, Texas.
