Richard Alan Rodriguez (; born May 24, 1963), also known as Rich Rod, is an American college football coach and former player. He is the current head football coach at West Virginia University, his second stint with his alma mater. Rodriguez previously was the head football coach at Salem University, Glenville State College, the University of Michigan, the University of Arizona, and Jacksonville State University. In 2011, Rodriguez worked as an analyst for CBS Sports.
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Playing career
A native of Grant Town, West Virginia, Rodriguez graduated from North Marion High School in 1981 where he played four sports and was an all-state football and basketball player. After high school, Rodriguez attended West Virginia University. Playing as a defensive back, he recorded 54 career tackles over three seasons.
Coaching career
West Virginia and Salem
During the 1985 season, Rodriguez was a student assistant under head coach Don Nehlen and graduated with a physical education degree. In 1986, he was hired by Salem College (now Salem University) where he was special teams coordinator and secondary coach. In 1987, he became Salem’s defensive coordinator and in 1988 took over as head coach. At 25 years old, he was the youngest college head coach in the country. He was 2–8 in his first season as head coach, after which the college announced it was dropping its football program.
In 1989, he returned to West Virginia University as a volunteer assistant.
Glenville State, Tulane, and Clemson
After Rodriguez's return to WVU as a volunteer coach with the outside linebackers for the 1989 football season, he left again to take over as head coach at Glenville State College (now Glenville State University). During his stay from 1990 to 1996, the team earned three consecutive West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) championships and competed in the 1993 NAIA national championship. His first season, 1990, he led the team to a 1–7 record. In 1991, Glenville improved to 4–5–1, then 6–4 season; in 1993, Rodriguez led Glenville to a 10–3 record and the WVIAC Championship and NAIA runner-up. The next two years, 1994 and 1995, Glenville finished as WVIAC Co-Champions. In Rodriguez's final season at Glenville, 1996, he led them to a Co-Championship once again. While at Glenville, Rodriguez compiled a record of 43–28–2 and was named WVIAC Coach of the Year in 1993 and 1994, NAIA National Coach of the Year in 1993, and West Virginia State College Coach of the Year in 1993 by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association. Glenville State's four championships under Rodriguez were their first since 1959 while his players' set five national career records for Division II.
Rodriguez left Glenville State at the end of the 1996 season to be assistant coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback coach for Tulane University from 1997 to 1998, under head coach Tommy Bowden. Rodriguez knew Bowden's father, Bobby Bowden, because he had worked at his camps during summers. In Rodriguez's first year as offensive coordinator his innovative offense succeeded as Tulane went 7–4 and had their best season since 1980. Rodriguez was part of Tulane's success, including their 12–0 season in Rodriguez's last season at Tulane, mainly for his spread offense with quarterback Shaun King. When Bowden was hired as the head coach at Clemson University, he kept Rodriguez on his staff. Rodriguez was the offensive coordinator and associate head coach until the end of the 2000 season. Rodriguez was considered to be the frontrunner for the Tulane coaching job following Bowden's departure and was led to believe that he was going to be the next coach for Tulane. However, Chris Scelfo was hired instead.
In 1999, Rodriguez interviewed for the head coaching job at Texas Tech but lost to Mike Leach.
West Virginia
On November 26, 2000, WVU's athletic department announced that Rodriguez would again return to West Virginia, this time as head coach to replace the retiring Don Nehlen. Rodriguez's first season at West Virginia, 2001, was a disappointing 3–8. However, they improved greatly the next year, as they went 9–4 while finishing as a runner-up in the Big East Conference; this also included back-to-back road wins against ranked Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh, and a Continental Tire Bowl berth, where they lost to ACC runner-up in Virginia. The Mountaineers finished second in the nation rushing with 283 yards per game and fourth in turnover margin. In 2003, the Mountaineers started the season 1–4, and after losing to #2 Miami 22–20, the Mountaineers posted a 6–1 Big East record and tied for the Big East championship with Miami, earning a Gator Bowl berth. That season, the Mountaineers replaced 22 seniors, eleven of which were starters. In 2004, the Mountaineers posted an 8–4 record with a talented team of seniors and juniors, but were ranked as high as sixth during the regular season.
Following the 2002 season, Rodriguez was awarded the Big East Coach of the Year by Sporting News and state college coach of the year for all sports by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association. He also received the 2003 Frank Loria Award from the West Virginia chapter of the National Football Foundation, and also earned Big East Coach of the Year that season. In 2005, he was offered to join the AFCA Board of Directors, and that same season was again given Big East Coach of the Year honors. In 2005, Rodriguez and the Mountaineers won the Big East title with freshman tandem Steve Slaton and Patrick White, thus claiming the conference's automatic berth in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS), where they defeated the Georgia Bulldogs in the Nokia Sugar Bowl and a final Associated Press ranking of fifth, tying the highest in school history (other in 1988).
Repeating their 2005 success, West Virginia posted another 11-win season, the first consecutive 10-win seasons in school history. The Mountaineers defeated Georgia Tech, 38–35, in the 2007 Gator Bowl and finished 10th in the final polls.
On December 7, 2006, Rodriguez received an offer to be the next Alabama Crimson Tide head coach. Despite reports that he had agreed in principle to coach at Alabama, which Rodriguez described as totally incorrect, on December 8, 2006, Rodriguez announced he would remain as head coach at West Virginia.
Michigan
Rodriguez was introduced by Michigan as its new coach at a news conference held on December 17, 2007, at the Junge Family Champions Center on the University of Michigan campus. After arriving at Michigan, Rodriguez installed a new staff. He brought several members of his West Virginia staff with him, including Tony Gibson and offensive coordinator Calvin Magee. Fred Jackson, the running backs coach, was the only coaching holdover from Lloyd Carr's staff. Rodriguez also changed the strength and conditioning facilities, completed a top ten incoming recruiting class in 2008 (which was recruited mainly by Carr and his staff), and installed his own recruiting to serve his spread offense. Equipment manager Jon Falk also stayed with the Michigan football program; he had been with Michigan since the days of Bo Schembechler.
Rodriguez began his Michigan coaching career on August 30, 2008, with a 25–23 loss to Utah. His 2008 team finished with a record of 3–9, the worst season in school history. Michigan's losing record meant that the team did not play in a post-season bowl game for the first time in 33 years, the longest such streak in college football up to that point. One of the few high points of the season came on September 27 when Michigan made the second-largest comeback in program history to defeat #9 Wisconsin 27–25 after trailing 19–0 late in the third quarter. That contest was also the 500th game played in Michigan Stadium.
Several Michigan players transferred and subsequently criticized Rodriguez. Justin Boren transferred from the program to rival Ohio State citing offensive behavior and a "lack of family values" from the coaching staff. Boren became first team all Big Ten at Ohio State University in the 2009 season. Others have supported the assertion about a lack of family values, including Detroit Free Press writer Michael Rosenberg, who stated "Rodriguez's staff uses some of the foulest, most degrading language imaginable. I know coaches curse, and I'm no prude, but this goes way beyond a few dirty words. This is a big part of why offensive lineman Justin Boren left the team. He felt his dignity was at stake." Former Michigan player Kurt Wermers claimed to not get along with coaches after transferring following the 2008 season to Ball State University, but he was, in fact, academically ineligible at the time of his transfer, calling into question the credibility of his claim.
Prior to the 2009 season several anonymous players told journalists (including Rosenberg) at the Detroit Free Press that Rodriguez and his coaching staff had habitually violated NCAA rules. The alleged offenses included attending unofficial scrimmages and requiring players to work out more hours than NCAA rules permit for the off-season. Rodriguez denied the allegations. On October 27, 2009, the NCAA sent a Notice of Inquiry to the University of Michigan stating the NCAA found reasonably reliable information indicating NCAA rule violations. Following the Notice, the investigation into potential major violations continued. On November 16, 2009, the University of Michigan Auditors looking into the NCAA violations discovered that University of Michigan Athletic Department staff failed to file monthly logs that track how much players work out and practice.
Arizona
Following Rodriguez's tenure at CBS, he was hired as the 30th head coach of the Arizona Wildcats football program on November 21, 2011. His hiring was first announced by University of Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne on Twitter while a press conference officially announcing him as the head coach was held a day later at McKale Center in Tucson. Rodriguez's hiring ended a 41-day search for a head coach which started after Mike Stoops was dismissed after eight seasons as Wildcat head coach.
In Rodriguez's first season at Arizona, the Wildcats finished the season 8–5 with a win over Nevada in the New Mexico Bowl. The season, which included Arizona running back Ka'Deem Carey breaking the school single-season records for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns, was Rodriguez' first winning debut season and first bowl appearance in a debut season. It also tied Jim Young for the most wins in an Arizona coach's debut season.
The Wildcats posted an 8–5 record in Rodriguez' second season as head coach. The season saw the emergence of star running back Carey and was capped with a victory over Boston College in the AdvoCare V100 Bowl.
In his third year, Rodriguez led the Wildcats to their first 5–0 start and top 10 ranking since 1998 after beating No. 2 Oregon 31–24. He then lost his first game to Southern California and subsequently lost to UCLA. After compiling an 0–2 mark against in-state arch-rival Arizona State his first two years, Rodriguez's Wildcats defeated the Sun Devils, 42–35 in 2014 to win the Pac-12 South Division, the first divisional championship in program history.
The Wildcats advanced to the Pac-12 Football Championship Game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, where they were defeated by their conference rivals, the Oregon Ducks, 51–13 (despite winning the regular season match-up). The Wildcats then played in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl, the school's third major-bowl appearance, where they faced the Boise State Broncos. Arizona lost the game to Boise State, 38–30. Under Coach Rodriguez, the Wildcats finished the 2014 season with a record of 10–4 (7–2 Pac-12), achieving only the second 10-win regular season in program history; the Wildcats also finished the season ranked #17 in the USA Today Coaches Poll and #19 in the AP Poll.
In what turned out to be his final game at Arizona, he coached the Wildcats to a 38-35 loss against Purdue in the 2017 Foster Farms Bowl on December 27, 2017.
Ole Miss
On December 31, 2018, it was announced that Rodriguez accepted the offensive coordinator position at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), joining newly hired defensive coordinator Mike MacIntyre (recently fired head coach at Colorado) on the staff of head coach Matt Luke. He received a three-year contract. After Matt Luke was fired in December 2019, new head coach Lane Kiffin did not offer a contract to Rodriguez.
Louisiana–Monroe
On January 12, 2021, it was announced that Rodriguez had accepted the offensive coordinator position at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
Jacksonville State
On November 30, 2021, Rodriguez was introduced as the new head coach of the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. During Rodriguez’s tenure with the Gamecocks, he aided their transition from FCS to FBS, producing three nine-win seasons and two conference titles. His implementation of the spread option led to Jacksonville State to become one of the top rushing offenses in the country, with running back Tre Stewart rushing for 1,604 yards and 23 touchdowns (both 3rd in the country) and quarterback Tyler Huff rushing for 1,343 yards and 14 touchdowns (12th and 23rd respectively).
Return to West Virginia
On December 11, 2024, it was reported that Rodriguez and West Virginia University had agreed in principle that he would become the next head football coach of the West Virginia Mountaineers with contract terms and language yet to be finalized. On December 12, 2024, he was officially named the 36th head football coach in the history of the West Virginia Mountaineers. Rodriguez' contract has been reported to be five years, averaging $3.75 million and starting at $3.5 million. This will be less than his predecessor, Neal Brown, made in 2024 and make him the lowest paid head football coach in the Big 12.
On March 11, 2025, Rodriguez announced that he would be banning his Mountaineers players from dancing on TikTok, saying he wanted his team to "have a hard edge."
Spread option
Rodriguez is considered a pioneer of a no huddle, run-oriented version of the spread offense, although a pass-first version was already being implemented by others. He first developed this offensive approach at Glenville State and refined it during his stops at Tulane with Shaun King, at Clemson with Woodrow Dantzler, and at West Virginia most notably with dual-threat quarterback Pat White. This strategy features frequent use of the shotgun formation. Rodriguez is also credited for popularizing the zone read play run out of the shotgun formation. Per his recollection, in practice, he noted the quarterback seeing a defender honing in on the running back on a planned handoff, and took the ball himself. When Rodriguez asked why the quarterback changed the play, he responded that he read the defender and chose to run a different play than scripted.
Family
Rodriguez and his wife, Rita, have two children, Raquel and Rhett. His grandfather is originally from Spain.