MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez turned down Alabama on Friday, telling his players that he'll be back for his sixth season with the Mountaineers.
A loud applause could be heard from inside the Milan Puskar Center at Mountaineer Field after Rodriguez told his team he would be staying at his alma mater. ... West Virginia athletic director Ed Pastilong worked on a proposal to keep Rodriguez at the school, but details were not immediately released. "It's a very good contract," said Stephen P. Goodwin, chairman of the WVU Board of Governors. "It's fair to the university. We're all tickled to death."
Goodwin said West Virginia wasn't trying to compete with Alabama's offer.
"We tried to make Rich the best offer WVU could make to keep him continuing on as a football coach. We didn't get into a bidding match. We couldn't have won that war," Goodwin said.
Too bad it means WVU has to pay him more, though. He had a contract already.
(In any event, what a surprise that CBS had it wrong! Oh my gosh! It's almost like the George W. Bush National Guard story, where they relied on forged documents and couldn't admit their error.)
