MORGANTOWN — Rich Rodriguez believes he’ll be a better coach now for West Virginia University than he was during his first tour of duty – and that is a pretty high bar to clear.
Yet he feels that his 17-year journey around college football following his tumultuous exit from Morgantown has put him in the position to make good on his belief.
Thousands of WVU fans filled half the WVU Coliseum on Friday afternoon to help welcome back Rodriguez as the Mountaineer football coach, nearly two decades after his first go-round produced some of the best seasons in program history.
The event was part-press conference, part-reunion, part-party. Pat McAfee – the former WVU All-America punter turned nationally renowned sports personality – broadcast his show live from the Coliseum floor and gave part of that broadcast to Rodriguez’s introduction. McAfee’s show included former Alabama coach and native West Virginian Nick Saban offering his well-wishes.
Rodriguez entered the area passing through fire-spouting columns and past the WVU pep band playing the university fight song. Several times during his speech to those thousands of cheering fans, he had to step away from the microphone to corral his emotions.
It wasn’t just about the opportunity to return to power-conference college football, he said. What really mattered to the Grant Town native was that he did it at his alma mater, a place where he enjoyed so many great times.
“There’s only one school in the country that I could coach at where I can say I know the town, I know what it’s like to be a student there, I know what it’s like to be an athlete there and I know what it’s like to live there,” he said. “And that’s West Virginia University.”
Rodriguez’s new contract details have yet to be released, but he mentioned he has signed a five-year deal to coach at WVU. WVU athletic director Wren Baker said he vetted dozens of candidates to search for the man to replace Neal Brown and interviewed more than 15. It was a popular job, he said, because of the program’s history and tradition, its resources and its passionate fan base.
Baker said there were a number of qualities that were necessary in the next football coach. He needed to embrace West Virginia values of work ethic, grit and passion, as well as be committed to building champions on the field and leaders off the field.
“Finally, we wanted someone who would entrench themselves in West Virginia,” he said. “This is an awesome place to live and work. It’s a privilege to represent Mountaineer Nation and we felt it would be important for our next head coach to understand that.”
Rodriguez said work ethic, grit and passion would be hallmarks of his football program, just as they were when he first was head coach at WVU from 2001-07. In that time, the Mountaineers went 60-26, reached six bowl games and made a pair of New Year’s SIx bowls, winning both. He said that all the players who wore the WVU uniform under his watch were passionate about their teammates, passionate about football and passionate about West Virginia University.
“Our players will play harder than anyone in the country,” he said. “One thing I say to my players all the time is that there are a lot of people in the stands who may not know all the Xs and Os. They may not know all the schemes we’re doing. But they can sit in those stands, especially at West Virginia and tell if you’re playing hard.
“I don’t make a lot of promises,” he added, “but one thing I promise you, if you watch West Virginia players play … they’ll play hard.”
Hiring a defensive coordinator will be Rodriguez’s first task. He said he has talked to a few candidates, and couldn’t say what type of defense WVU would run until he made a decision. He did say West Virginia’s offense would look very familiar, the type of high-tempo, explosive game that players like Rasheed Marshall, Pat White, Steve Slaton and Noel Devine made famous.
Rodriguez also acknowledged that not all WVU fans were happy with his return. Some were still bitter over how he left WVU for the head coaching job at Michigan, where he served three years before being fired. Rodriguez admitted it was a mistake to leave WVU, and to leave WVU the way he did.
“I promise not just to the folks that are upset, but to everybody here and everybody that’s been supportive, I want to earn your support. We want to earn your support and trust back. I’m committed to that.”
He’ll do that by learning from his mistakes, he said. Those just aren’t the mistakes from 17 years ago, but also the mistakes from seven years and even seven days ago. All of those, he said, will help him become the best version of himself in the present.
Rodriguez understands the privilege he now enjoys in returning to West Virginia University. He said he’ll do everything he can to earn that privilege.
“I have thought about this moment,” Rodriguez said. “I get to coach at the greatest university in this country. I get to live in the greatest state in the Union. And more importantly, I get to be around the greatest people that you can be around.”
— Story by Derek Redd
