The college football coaching carousel continues to heat up, and another familiar name is headed home.
West Virginia is hiring Jacksonville State coach Rich Rodriguez as its next coach, the team announced Thursday. Rodriguez and the Mountaineers reunite 17 years after Rodriguez left for the Michigan football job. Since then, he’s also been the coach at Michigan and, most recently, with the Gamecocks.
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Rodriguez, 61, posted a 60-26 record in his seven years with WVU, which included three straight 10-win seasons and four Big East championships between 2001 and 2007. The Mountaineers went 32-5 during a stretch from 2005-07, including one loss short of a chance at competing in the 2007 BCS national championship game. He has a career record 189-129-2 with the Mountaineers, Michigan, Arizona and Jacksonville State.
West Virginia reached No. 2 in the BCS rankings before finishing the season ranked sixth in Rodriguez’s final season at the helm. The Mountaineers have not been as highly ranked since. Former West Virginia coach Neal Brown was fired following the 2024 season after the program went 37-35 in six seasons. WVU went 6-6 this season.
Jacksonville State hired Rodriguez on Nov. 30, 2021. In three seasons with the Gamecocks, Rodriguez has a 27-10, including the program’s first-ever bowl win last season and a Conference USA championship this season. Rodriguez helped the program transition from FCS football to FBS during the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
The Gamecocks have won at least nine games every year under Rodriguez and can reach double figures for the first time as an FBS program with a win over Ohio in the Cure Bowl in Orlando on Dec. 20.
Rodriguez succeeded Lloyd Carr at Michigan and posted a 15-22 record from 2008-10. He was fired in Ann Arbor on Jan. 5, 2011, eventually taking over at Arizona in the 2012 college football season. The Wildcats went 43-35 under Rodriguez from 2012-17, which included a 10-4 mark and a Fiesta Bowl appearance in 2014.
However, he was fired at Arizona on Jan. 2, 2018, following a 7-6 season and allegations of sexual harassment off the field.
Like Rodriguez, UCF hired a former coach, Scott Frost. Frost coached the Knights from 2016-17 before taking a job with his alma mater Nebraska. He was fired by the Cornhuskers in 2022 and was re-hired by UCF earlier this week.
Rich Rodriguez head coaching record
Here’s a look at Rodriguez’s coaching record with West Virginia, Michigan, Arizona and Jacksonville State:
Conference records in parentheses
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2001 (West Virginia): 3-8 (1-6 Big East)
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2002 (West Virginia): 9-4 (6-1 Big East)
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2003 (West Virginia): 8-5 (6-1 Big East)
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2004 (West Virginia): 8-4 (4-2 Big East)
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2005 (West Virginia): 11-1 (7-0 Big East)
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2006 (West Virginia): 11-2 (5-2 Big East)
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2007 (West Virginia): 10-2 (5-2 Big East)
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2008 (Michigan): 3-9 (2-6 Big Ten)
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2009 (Michigan): 5-7 (1-7 Big Ten)
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2010 (Michigan): 7-6 (3-5 Big Ten)
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2012 (Arizona): 8-5 (4-5 Pac-12)
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2013 (Arizona): 8-5 (4-5 Pac-12)
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2014 (Arizona): 10-4 (7-2 Pac-12)
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2015 (Arizona): 7-6 (3-6 Pac-12)
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2016 (Arizona): 3-9 (1-8 Pac-12)
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2017 (Arizona): 7-6 (5-4 Pac-12)
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2022 (Jacksonville State): 9-2 (5-0 ASUN)
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2023 (Jacksonville State): 9-4 (6-2 Conference USA)
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2024 (Jacksonville State): 8-4 (7-1 Conference USA)
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Career record: 189-129-2
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: West Virginia hires Rich Rodriguez as next football coach
