West Virginia appears to be on the verge of a significant coaching change as reports suggest a reunion with Rich Rodriguez. The 61-year-old native of the state is in the running to become the Mountaineers' next head football coach. This move comes after Neal Brown was let go earlier this month after a six-season tenure with a 37-35 record. Rodriguez, who has been at Jacksonville State for the past two years, is now the school's top choice.

Bringing Back National Prominence

The school holds high hopes that Rodriguez can lead them back to national prominence. He previously achieved remarkable success with the Mountaineers from 2005 to 2007, posting a 33-5 record during that three-year stretch. This was a golden era for the program, and now they are looking to recapture that glory. Before moving on to Michigan in 2008, Rodriguez left a lasting legacy at West Virginia.In Ann Arbor, Rodriguez's tenure was not as successful. He coached the Wolverines for three seasons with a 15-22 record. However, it's important to note that the team's win total improved each year under his leadership, going from 3-9 in 2008 to 7-6 in 2010. Despite this, Michigan decided to part ways with him. Before his time at Jacksonville State, Rodriguez was last a head coach at Arizona, where he had a 43-35 record from 2012 to 2017. But his tenure there came to an end after an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment.

Recent Success at Jacksonville State

Since then, Rodriguez has resurrected his coaching career. At Jacksonville State, he guided the Gamecocks to consecutive 9-4 seasons and even won a Conference USA title in 2024. This shows his ability to turn around a program and achieve significant results. West Virginia, on the other hand, had a 6-6 season last year and has reached the double-digit win mark only twice since Rodriguez's last stint in Morgantown.During his first head coaching tenure with the Mountaineers, the team had an impressive 60-26 record and earned at least a share of the conference title in four out of his seven seasons. He started his coaching journey at West Virginia as a defensive back from 1981 to 1984 and also served as the linebackers coach for one year in 1989.

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