WVU $4,000,000 -- Rich Rod Zero

by srr50 on Jul 9, 2025 10:14 AM CDT in Texas Longhorns and Other Football

Rich Rodriguez will pay the full amount of his buyout clause to West Virginia. Reports are that the two sides agreed to end the ugly divorce proceedings late Tuesday night.

Rodriguez (and Michigan) were looking at WVU deposing Michigan's President and AD to get them to testify under oath as to what they knew about Rodriguez' buyout clause when they were negotiating to hire him. West Virginia was claiming that Rodriguez fully understood his buyout clause, since he negotiated with Michigan to help him with the payment.

In fact, a memo from Rodriguez' CPA during the negotiations with the Wolverines, states that they should not only pay the entire $4 million, but also kick in the taxes on it, since it would be part of his compensation.

The ugly divorce, combined with the sudden and somewhat shady negotiations for the hire, have left both Rodriguez and Michigan with tarnished reputations. The court battle over the buyout was shaping up to match the Christie Brinkley divorce proceedings for name calling. The fact that it would take place in November, right before the Ohio State game, was probably too much to handle for Rich Rod and Michigan.

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Read this last week.

(West Virginia AD Mike) Garrison acknowledged he was surprised that Rodriguez had “engaged in meaningful, apparent negotiations” with Michigan the day before and that he had to learn of those talks through the media. He also said it’s possible he raised his voice as the conversation became more heated.

“I don’t know if I yelled or not, but there was, there was one point in the conversation where I did become aggravated, and it was the point in the conversation when I expressed my strong feelings — which I maintain today — that there is great value in coaching at your alma mater, at your home university and in your home state.”

Rodriguez “didn’t think the place was necessarily any more special than anyplace else,” Garrison testified, “and I was angry about that.”

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by HenryJames on Jul 9, 2025 11:19 AM CDT reply actions