West Virginia Finalizing a Deal to Bring Back Rich Rodriguez As Head Coach

Rich Rodriguez is set to head back to Morgantown.

Sources tell Sports Illustrated's Bryan Fischer that West Virginia is close to finalizing a deal to bring Rodriguez back as coach. The second marriage between the two sides was first reported by ESPN's Pete Thamel.

Per sources, West Virginia is close to finalizing a deal to bring Rich Rodriguez back as head coach. He went 27-10 at JaxState and was 60-26 during his first stint in Morgantown. @PeteThamel first.
— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) December 11, 2024

Rodriguez was West Virginia's coach from 2001 to '07 before he left for the University of Michigan. He went 60–26 over his first stint leading West Virginia. He was most recently Jacksonville State's coach, going 27–10 with the Gamecocks over three seasons.

After his first stint with the Mountaineers, Rodriguez coached the Michigan Wolverines for three seasons, where he went 15–22. After a disappointing stint in Ann Arbor, he coached at Arizona for six seasons from 2012 to '17 and recorded a 43–35 record.

Following his dismissal from Arizona, he spent time on the coaching staffs at Ole Miss, Hawai'i and Louisiana-Monroe before he was hired as the head coach at Jacksonville State.

Rodriguez and West Virginia University didn't separate amicably the first time around. The two parties found themselves in a legal battle when the university said Rodriguez owed the school a multimillion dollar buyout after he agreed to a new contract just months before he left for Michigan. The lawsuit was eventually settled, which resulted in Rodriguez paying $1.5 million to West Virginia, while Michigan paid another $2.5 million.

The news of Rodriguez finalizing a deal to return to West Virginia comes on the same night that Bill Belichick, the all-time great former New England Patriots coach, finalized a deal to coach the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Rodriguez is set to inherit a Mountaineers squad that finished 6–6 this season. WVU finished ninth in the now 16-team Big 12. They will play the No. 25 ranked Memphis Tigers in the Frisco Bowl on Dec. 17. Chad Scott is West Virginia's interim head coach, a position he assumed early December after Neal Brown was fired.