If West Virginia had any hard feelings about Rich Rodriguez for leaving 17 years ago, it wasn’t evident at the news conference marking his return to Morgantown on Friday.
Well, one fan apparently wasn’t thrilled about Rodriguez returning to coach the Mountaineers. However, fans in attendance quickly booed the heckler and eventually escorted him out of the WVU Coliseum.
Rodriguez quickly made fun of the heckler, winning over the crowd who were already excited for his return.
“Okay, all the other Pitt fans can leave the building,” said Rodriguez, who previously coached West Virginia from 2001-07 before leaving for Michigan.
The reaction of the fans – a offensive chants toward rival Pitt — got Rodriguez emotional as he began his remarks.
“This is really surreal,” he said. “I should never have left.
Rodriguez signed a five-year contract with WVU and will be paid an average annual salary of $3.75 million, according to ESPN. Trade value could increase with incentives tied to winning totals and other benchmarks.
During his first stint in Morgantown, Rodriguez went 60–26 with five bowl appearances, including a Sugar Bowl victory over Georgia after the 2005 season. Rodriguez went 32–5 over WVU’s last three seasons and oversaw a revolutionary spread offense. Most memorably, the Mountaineers were in position for the 2007 BCS Championship Game, but lost 13–9 to Pitt.
Rodriguez left before WVU played in the Fiesta Bowl, where they beat Oklahoma under interim coach Bill Stewart. Stewart was eventually named permanent head coach.
This latest loss to Pitt obviously stuck with Rodriguez, who chose to jab at the Panthers several times during his press conference and interview. with WVU alum Pat McAfee.
“I probably got it a little wrong when I said the two worst four-letter words were ‘soft’ and ‘lazy,'” Rodriguez said when describing the types of players he didn’t want at West Virginia. “I left out Pitt.
West Virginia and Pitt play next season on Sept. 13.