Peru State athletic director Steve Schneider has announced that Bob Ludwig has been hired to become the 28th head coach for the Bobcat men’s basketball program which will begin its 116th year in the sport.
Schneider commented, “I’m very excited to have Bob Ludwig leading our men’s basketball program. I’ve hired many successful coaches during my tenure as an AD, but no coach was better prepared for an interview and no coach went after the job as hard as Bob did. This is a reflection of his work ethic, passion and desire to succeed. Having worked under several very successful head coaches, Bob is well prepared for the task at hand. My expectation is that his players will perform first and foremost in the classroom, model champions of character behavior and attitude, and win on the court. We at Peru State are looking forward to Bob’s leadership with our men’s program and support of departmental operations.”
Ludwig comes to Peru State with ten years of experience at the collegiate level. This past season, Ludwig was the assistant coach at Central Wyoming College in Riverton. The Rustlers finished with a 21-9 mark.
Two years ago, Ludwig was a volunteer assistant for the Bobcats under previous head coach Eric Behrens. That year the ‘Cats were the co-regular season Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) champions and qualified for the NAIA Division 1 National Tournament for the first time in nine years.
Prior to his stint at Peru State, Ludwig was the lead assistant and recruiting coordinator at Midland University in Fremont, Neb. In the four years while he was on the Warrior staff, the program qualified for three NAIA Division II National Tournaments, including having a 30-6 campaign in which the team made an appearance in the 2013-14 championship game. The following year, Midland won the 2014-15 Great Plains Athletic Conference Championship.
Ludwig’s coaching experience includes a stop at his hometown school, Bellevue (Neb.) University. In his three years at Bellevue, the program won two Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference regular season titles and two conference tournament championships.
He spent one year prior to Bellevue at Nebraska Wesleyan in Lincoln and also had one year of high school coaching experience as a varsity assistant and head freshman coach at Bellevue East (Neb.).
Ludwig graduated from Nebraska Wesleyan in the summer of 2006 with a bachelor of arts in English with a creative writing emphasis and a concentration in journalism where he played four years of collegiate ball as a Plainsman. He earned his master of science in management from Bellevue in the summer of 2012.
On his first head coaching assignment, Ludwig noted, “I am very grateful that Athletic Director Schneider and President Hanson have entrusted me with the opportunity to lead the men’s basketball program at Peru State College. It is really special for my wife (Cathy) and I to be starting this new chapter near where I grew up and coached for so many years.”
Concluding, Ludwig added, “I’m honored to be a part of an awesome athletic department with great leadership and to be competing in the Heart of America Athletic Conference against some of the best teams and coaches in the NAIA. I look forward to working with everyone in the Bobcat family!”
http://pscbobcats.com/news/2017/5/24/ludwig-to-lead-bobcat-mens-basketball-program.aspx
