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It's winter in Tucson, Ariz., and Rich Rodriguez is, well . . . happy.
That’s noteworthy because, for the new head football coach at Arizona, “happy’’ represents a distinct upgrade over the past five years.
No, happy does not mean all the bitterness has dissipated after his three rocky years at Michigan, which ended with a losing record, NCAA sanctions and, ultimately, his dismissal in January 2011.
Happy does not mean Rodriguez has forgotten his ugly exit from West Virginia, nor the threats against his family, nor the multi-million-dollar breach-of-contract suit that ensued.
But as the bright desert sun shone into his office on a recent work day, Rodriguez, 48, was confident, effusive and positive as he reflected on second chances, lessons learned and the task ahead — the task of building the Wildcats into a Pac-12 power.
"I haven't had to break out my winter coat yet,’’ he says with the hint of a drawl that reminds you of his West Virginia youth.
“You wake up every morning and the sun is shining, it's 70 degrees and sunny — I think [that] makes people happier."
Fresh start, fresh challenges
It’s amid all this optimism that Rodriguez, after a year away from the sidelines, is making his re-entry, as successor to Mike Stoops, who was fired in October, the program in disarray.
Three bowl appearances since 1998 — during a robust college-football bowl economy — cannot sustain an elite program. The Wildcats needed a fresh start. And so did Rodriguez.
"They were hungry, wanted to prove themselves," he says.
"They had a blank slate, so to speak, as far as building the program, and a brand-new football complex that is getting built as we speak — I thought it was a perfect fit."
This is Rodriguez’s first foray into Pac-12 football, whose perception seems to suffer East of the Mississippi – an area off RichRod’s radar in his previous coaching stops.
But he's learning fast.
"Without question, it's one of the best conferences in the country," Rodriguez says of the Pac-12. "But is [their defense] as good of a defense as maybe some of the top defenses in the SEC? No."
Rodriguez also offers up an explanation as to why SEC defensive numbers are so good.
"There's more variety and creativity in [Pac-12] offenses than anywhere in the country," he explains. In other words, the SEC defensive numbers probably would drop if SEC teams had to face Pac-12 offenses on a regular basis.
"The quarterback play in our league is really, really good,’’ Rodriguez says. “A lot of people never heard of Aaron Rodgers (a Cal-Berkley alum). I think he's doing pretty good."
Rodriguez says his first and most pressing challenge at Arizona was getting the players better conditioned.
"I kind of expected that, because any time you have a transition in coaching, particularly like when Mike [Stoops] got let go in midseason, guys may not work out as hard in the weight room or conditioning like they normally would," he says.
"We're very weak right now as a football team. We were not strong enough, we're not fast enough, not conditioned enough . . . but they're working to fix that."
It may sound like he is being overly-critical, but he's not — he's concerned about getting his players in shape so they can compete, win and change the culture in Tucson.
"We've got to make everybody understand that it's OK to make sure football is really, really important," he says emphatically.
West Virginia: Victories . . . and venom
His history suggests Rodriguez can succeed in elevating Arizona football.
In his seven years (2001-07) at West Virginia, Rodriguez returned Mountaineers football to the elite program that former coach Don Nehlen had built. Rodriguez received Coach of the Year awards, a 2006 Sugar Bowl trophy and coached two teams to a Top Ten final ranking. He was 60-26 overall.
In August 2007 Rodriguez reportedly renegotiated his contract with West Virginia — but four months later, bolted for Michigan.
Apoplectic Mountaineers fans viewed the Grant Town, W.Va., native as a traitor.
"I expected some backlash,'' he concedes.
But not the venom that he — and his family — got.
"The level it went to surprised me a little bit just from the standpoint that we thought, for seven years, we devoted everything we could — we thought we helped elevate the program and left it in great shape. It wasn't just like we went there, crashed, burned and left."
Rodriguez acknowledges there were threats made against his family, but says, "Any time you're in a high-profile public position anywhere, that's probably par for the course."
When he was announced as new coach at Michigan in December 2007, his controversial departure from Morgantown ignited a messy lawsuit and polarized large segments of college football nation.
West Virginia demanded the court find he breached his contract and was obligated to pay its $4 million buyout clause. Eventually it was settled out of court in the summer of 2008, with Michigan agreeing to pay Rodriguez's former employer $2.5 million and Rodriguez ponying up $1.5 million.
Michigan: Rebuilding . . . and regrets
Just a few months before the West Virginia lawsuit was settled, Rodriguez surveyed his Michigan team. Heavy losses from a graduating Wolverines class of 26, as well as some early departures to the NFL, pointed to a work in project for 2008 — and beyond.
Rodriguez recalls he had "an offense that had one or two starters that were coming back" and a defense “that lost their top five or six top tacklers."
"We knew we were starting all over again," he admits. "We knew, after the first spring, it was going to take us a while. It was going to take more than three years."
In 2008 the Wolverines won two of their first four games before going on a five-game losing streak. They finished with a 3-9 record, worst in school history.
In 2009, things started out better, but the Wolverines still finished with a second consecutive losing season (5-7) — and trouble was looming off the field.
The NCAA was investigating the program for major violations allegedly committed by Rodriguez and his staff. The allegations were serious, mostly stemming from failing to file monthly practice reports and misusing graduate assistants in coaching positions.
In 2010, the school self-imposed sanctions and the NCAA tacked on an additional year of probation. Rodriguez's hot seat was in flames . . . and West Virginia fans were delighting in schadenfreude.
A 7-5 season was an improvement, but it didn't sate Rodriguez's critics. He was dismissed in January 2011 after just three years as Michigan's head coach.
Today, on this sunny day in the Arizona desert, the elephant in the room is hard to ignore. Did Michigan give him a fair chance?
"Of course I'm biased, but I don’t think we got the chance to finish the job," he says. "But somebody up there may tell you something differently."
Rodriguez says the team was "right on track," but acknowledges there were instances in which he wished he had done some things differently or been given the chance to do them over again. But that admission isn't specifically addressed at Michigan.
"I can tell you that in every year I've ever coached," he says.
In 2011 Rodriguez landed a gig as a college-football broadcaster at CBS, something he says he really enjoyed. But the desire to return to coaching was still in his heart.
"It was a little different going into the green room and putting make-up on . . . that part there wasn't in Coaching 101," he says with a laugh.
Arizona: The road back
There's a hint of sorrow over his experience at Michigan, but Rodriguez says he has "some good memories, learned a lot and moved on."
Moved on to Arizona, where spring practice already has begun.
Rodriguez is looking closely at the quarterback position battle between Matt Scott and Richard Morrison. He's "excited to see what those two can do running our offense," and if "they can run as well as some of the guys I've had in the past."
"We like to go fast," he says.
Offensive huddles are now obsolete in Tucson. It's non-stop go-time or bust.
That exact philosophy might explain why he's not counting on four years — like he did at Michigan — to get Arizona playing more competitively and at an up-tempo pace.
"Oh gosh no, I hope not [four years]," he laughs.
"I hope six months."
Six months from now is early September, the first week of the college football season.
With nothing but sunshine and average daily temperatures in the mid- to high-90s, Rich Rodriguez should be deliriously happy.
