As fate would have it, Pittsburgh chancellor Mark Nordenberg phoned Steve Pederson on that October morning when Pederson learned that he was out as Nebraska’s athletic director.

He phoned back a day later.

“We first talked as friends,” Nordenberg recalled Friday. “And then I stated the obvious: ‘We’re looking for an athletic director. You now may be available.’”

A month after cashing a $2.2 million buyout of his contract with NU officials, one that he is under no obligation to repay, Pederson was reintroduced as Pittsburgh’s athletic director at a Friday news conference.

Pederson, a native of North Platte, was Pitt’s AD from 1996 to 2002 before leaving for Nebraska.

“Leaving here five years ago was the hardest professional decision that we had ever made,” Pederson said. “Coming back at this time is the easiest.”

In replacing Jeff Long, who left Pittsburgh in September to become the AD at Arkansas, Pederson adds yet another chapter to the whirlwind that has been his career in athletic administration in recent years.

His hiring by NU in December 2002 was heralded at the time, but was later questioned when Pederson fired head football coach Frank Solich, whose team went 9-3 in 2003, and during a muddled 41-day search to replace him.

Pederson eventually hired Bill Callahan and much-needed facility upgrades were completed on his watch.

Nebraska reached the Big 12 Championship Game last season, and in July, Pederson’s original 5½-year contract was extended through July 2013, with an annual salary of  $500,000 guaranteed.

However, Nebraska’s football fortunes quickly dropped, and on Oct. 15, two days after NU suffered its worst home loss in football in nearly 50 years, Pederson was fired.

In announcing his decision, NU chancellor Harvey Perlman cited concerns over how Pederson managed staff members.

“I think managerial style depends on how many games your teams win,” Pederson said Friday. “I’m a demanding boss in a lot of ways, but not more than I would demand of myself. That doesn’t mean everybody’s going to like it.”

Pederson, who helped rebuild Pitt’s basketball and football programs during his first stint at the school, said his greatest immediate challenge upon returning is to help the football program improve.

Dave Wannstedt, who some say was Pederson’s first choice to replace Solich at Nebraska, now coaches Pitt. The Panthers are just 4-7 heading into today’s game at No. 2 West Virginia.

“Dave’s a good friend and somebody that I am excited to work with,” Pederson said.

Another longtime friend, Nordenberg, called Pederson “one of this country’s most talented and accomplished athletic directors.”

In his first stay at Pitt, he was instrumental in moving the Panther football team to Heinz Field, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and in construction of a new on-campus arena for basketball.

His first stint began 11 years ago today. But during Friday’s news conference, Pederson said Nebraska will always have a special place in the hearts of he and his family.

““I wish them the very, very best of success in the future,” he said.

No terms of his contract at Pitt were immediately available.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Reach Todd Henrichs at 473-7320 or thenrichs@journalstar.com.