Mike Sanford was named UNLV's head football coach last month.

The 27-year coaching veteran enters his first head coaching position after an outstanding career as one of the top assistants in the nation. He has spent the last two seasons as offensive coordinator at the University of Utah, which went 21-2 overall and 13-1 in the Mountain West Conference during his time in Salt Lake City. The 2004 Utes earned a spot in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl as part of the Bowl Championship Series.

"The UNLV job was one I looked upon with great respect over the years," Sanford says. "Because of the way this university and city are emerging, this football program is a gold mine. This is a great community and campus that offer so many opportunities and advantages. John Robinson laid the foundation here and I am ready to build on that. This football program is ready to explode."

In his two years as Utah's offensive coordinator, Sanford helped instigate one of the biggest offensive turnarounds in the nation while directing an innovative spread offense.

Sanford's first coaching position was as a graduate assistant at the University of Southern California under the man he replaces, Robinson.

His NCAA Division I coaching experience includes stints at Stanford, Notre Dame, USC, Purdue, Long Beach State, Virginia Military Institute and Army. He also was the receivers coach for the NFL's San Diego Chargers from 1999 to 2001.