Reports: Former UA coach Rich Rodriguez to become Ole Miss OC
Dec 30, 2018, 8:37 PM
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Former Arizona football coach Rich Rodriguez looks poised to return to college football.
Several outlets are reporting Rodriguez will be the next offensive coordinator at Ole Miss, a year after he was fired as the Wildcats’ head coach.
Fox Sports’ Bruce Feldman first reported the Rodriguez to Ole Miss move on Sunday.
247 Sports reported that the deal, which is not official, will be for multiple seasons and Rodriguez will earn just shy of $1 million per season.
Rodriguez was fired as the Wildcats’ coach last January, with athletic director Dave Heeke and President Robert Robbins saying in a statement that an investigation into harassment allegations against the coach had been conducted.
The Arizona Attorney General’s Office confirmed a $7.5 million notice of claim had been filed against Rodriguez. Such a notice is in advance of a lawsuit.
According to the university’s release, a former employee of the Department of Athletics alleged that Rodriguez had harassed her “on multiple occasions.”
“Like all University employees, Mr. Rodriguez is entitled to a fair investigation and due process and at no time has the university believed that Mr. Rodriguez posed any danger to a member of the community,” the release said.
The university sought the law firm of Cohen Down Quigley to conduct the investigation into the allegations, which began in October. According to Heeke, the former employee declined to participate in the investigation after multiple requests were made by the university.
“In addition, she was unwilling to turn over communications that she alleged provided support for her allegations and recently filed a notice financial claim against Mr. Rodriguez,” the release said.
Because of this, the university was unable to confirm that the harassment allegations occurred. However, during the investigation the athletic department said they became aware of information that “caused it to be concerned with the direction and climate of the football program.”
Rodriguez compiled a 43-35 record in Tucson and led the Wildcats to five bowl games.