By: Justin “Couz” Walker | WV Sports Chat
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Rich Rodriguez came back to coach the West Virginia Mountaineer football program in 2025, much to the chagrin of some within the fanbase. However, after his introductory press conference in December 2024, many of those fans accepted Rodriguez back in hopes he could return the program to where it was prior to him leaving in 2007.
Winning is Important for WVU Football
In a recent interview with JD Pickell of On3, the Grant Town, W.Va. native explained that returning to coach WVU football was indeed personal to him.
Yeah, it is personal. Not only did I play here and coached here before, but I also grew up an hour from here. That’s our roots, my family’s roots. So, I know how important it is to the people of West Virginia, how important it is to our state.
Making Sure Recruits Understand the Importance
When discussing how important it is to get the intrinsic value of West Virginia across to his players, Rodriguez explained how the Mountaineers have to recruit far and wide.
You know, we have a small state, so a lot of our roster is from all over the country. We got 25 different states represented and two or three different countries. I want them to understand how important it is to the people of West Virginia for us to have success.
WVU Women’s Basketball is Proof of State’s Passion
The veteran coach even used the recent success of the women’s basketball team as an example.
It’s like our girls basketball team made a nice run in the tournament and hosted the first couple of games. Our coliseum holds whatever, 13,000, it was packed. It was such a source of pride for the state to come support WVU that I want all of our guys, whether they are from here or not from here, to realize how important it is to our state and to our communities.
Summary: Some Things Have Not Changed
Take these words, along with the fact that Rodriguez has one of the lowest salaries among Big 12 head coaches ($3.6 million annually), and it doesn’t take long to realize that it means something deeper for Rodriguez.
A lot has changed for WVU and for college football as a whole since Rodriguez last had the reigns of the program. The Mountaineers are now in the Big 12 Conference, schools are now paying players a share of the revenue, players have unlimited transfers without punishment and they can make money from their name, image and likeness (NIL).
However, some things have not changed. It’s still football, the field is still 100-yards long, and Rodriguez still has a desire to win. He still has the desire to get West Virginia football back to its winning ways; just like he did the first time around.
Check out this recent article to find out what Rodriguez told Pickell about his “TikTok ban.”
Photo Credit: WVU Athletics
