Utah Aug 29, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; A general view of the helmet worn by the Utah Utes in the game against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

After Kyle Whittingham saw one of his coaches depart, he quickly worked to fill the void. The Utah Utes promoted Mike Bajakian to the interim offensive coordinator role.

“Utah’s Kyle Whittingham has promoted Mike Bajakian to Interim offensive coordinator,” Bruce Feldman said.

Feldman noted he’ll also be the team’s quarterbacks coach and their primary play-caller.

The Utes saw Andy Ludwig depart after a disappointing start to the 2024 college football season. This is that time of year, where resignations and dismissals begin to swell.

Before he joined the Utah staff, Bajakian worked for various NFL and college teams. His last stop before going to Salt Lake City was at Northwestern, where he held a job from 2020 to 2023. He also previously worked for Rutgers, Sacred Heart, Michigan, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Tennessee, Boson College, the Chicago Bears, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So he’s well-traveled. Now he’ll get one of his biggest shots to date at a strong program in SLC.

Utah is 4-3 and 1-3 in Big 12 play. The Utes‘ first season in the Big 12 isn’t going as many predicted. Some envisioned the team contending for the Big 12 Championship this season. But unless they go on a massive turnaround, they won’t be playing for one in December at all.

[Bruce Feldman]

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About Chris Novak

Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022