Vanderbilt has finally found someone to run their offensive. Wisconsin offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig will leave the Badgers and new head coach Paul Chryst to take on the same position with the Commodores.
Tom Dienhart of BTN.com reports:
BTN.com has learned that Wisconsin offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig has been hired at Vanderbilt. He will coordinate the Commodore attack. Ludwig pushed the buttons on a Badger offense that finished No. 3 in the Big Ten (464.8 ypg) despite not having a true No. 1 quarterback for most of the season.
Ludwig was the architect behind a high-powered Wisconsin attack that relied heavily on an other-worldly running back rotation led by Heisman runner-up Melvin Gordon. They struggled behind quarterback Joel Stave's Chuck Knoblauch-ian yips and the fact that Tanner McEvoy was a safety masquerading as a passer this fall. Despite that disparity and the fact that every opponent knew what was coming, he helped the Badgers go 19-7 over the past two years.
Before taking over offensive duties in Madison, Ludwig served as the OC at these schools:
- Augustana
- Cal Poly
- Fresno State
- Oregon
- Utah
- California
- San Diego State
That's an impressive list of programs that have hired the longtime assistant. Over that span, he's coached Kellen Clemens in Oregon, allowed defensive back Eric Weddle to throw six passes at Utah, and rode a dynamite Jahvid Best/Shane Vereen running back platoon to eight wins with the California Golden Bears. His biggest accomplishment came when he helped the Utes spank Alabama in the 2008 Sugar Bowl to close up a 13-0 season.
Ludwig is slated to replace Karl Dorrell, who installed one of the nation's worst offenses in Nashville this fall. The 'Dores failed to crack the top 100 in every meaningful category while going 3-9 in 2014. That will set the bar pretty low for the former Wisconsin assistant. Based on his resume alone, Ludwig's arrival may mean big things for Vandy tailback Ralph Webb in 2015 and beyond.