http://www.sportsline.com/columns/weblog...y/10507458
Dodds and Ends
Dodds and Ends By Dennis Dodd
CBSSports.com Senior Writer
Tell Dennis your opinion!
Dennis Dodd covers college football. But don't be surprised to see a little something on college baseball, or maybe hockey, as he shares his thoughts on the sports world.
Step back, all you critics, because Rodriguez took a step up
Updated: Dec/16/2007 08:04 PM
Rich Rodriguez finally found a place where it's easier to win a national championship; where the consolation prize can sometimes be the Rose Bowl.
The Big Ten.
The week-in, week-out meat grinder that is the Big East finally forced him to Michigan for more money and less stress. OK, that's a simplification, but not much of one. That's the current state of the Michigan and West Virginia programs after Rodriguez became the Wolverines' 17th coach on Sunday. You don't say no to Michigan, so when you consummate the relationship it's hard to believe things are going to be easier.
The Big Ten is at one of its low points. No one would doubt that. Ohio State is playing in the BCS title game for the second consecutive year and the worldwide perception is that it somehow doesn't belong there. Does Jim Tressel care? No, but hang with me.
The Big East, meanwhile, has turned into what the Big Ten used to be. Tough. Competitive. In early November 2006, it had three undefeated teams. Earlier this season, South Florida was ranked second. Three of the conference's eight teams are ranked heading into the bowls. Rodriguez's old team has won at least a share of four of the past five Big East titles.
The Big East is so tough that Michigan AD Bill Martin ought to be sending thank you cards to Pittsburgh. Had not the Panthers knocked West Virginia out of the national title race on Dec. 1, it's doubtful Rodriguez would have been available.
Playing for it all at LSU certainly had to factor in Les Miles' decision not to come. But that's ancient history. A very public and, at times, a very messy process is over. Martin's third option sure does seem like a top choice at this point.
Sure, Rodriguez was hired to do one thing above all others -- beat Ohio State -- but moving up a notch makes his overall task less difficult. Consider that those Buckeyes lost on Nov. 10 to unranked Illinois, did not beat a top 20 team (at kickoff) this season for the first time in 71 years and find themselves back in the title picture.
Hey, in any given year that could be you, Michigan -- with minimal improvement from Rodriguez.
That scenario also couldn't happen in the Big East. Rutgers went 10-2 in the regular season last year and found itself playing in the Texas Bowl.
You don't say no to Michigan, but Rod already had turned down another superpower, Alabama. It's weird how circumstances can congeal to make a guy neck in the back seat with 'Bama but walk to the altar with Michigan after a couple of days of dating.
Maybe it's the fact that this is a chance he'll never get again. Blow off Alabama and Michigan and there aren't too many top 10 programs left. Plus, he had done just about everything he could do in Morgantown.
As Rodriguez said on many occasions, you fly over West Virginia and you see more deer stands than rooftops. That's another way of saying he had to recruit his butt off just to get the Mountaineers to where they are now.
Believe me, it won't be that hard at Michigan. The whole program will be energized. Rodriguez will seamlessly transfer his spread offense to the Big House. It fits the culture because Rod's spread might be the only one in the country that features a power running game.
The expectations will be out the wazoo but Rodriguez will have: 1.) Facilities. The building going on in Ann Arbor right now makes it look like a city within a city.
2.) Recruits. The nation's No. 1 quarterback recruit, Terrelle Pryor from Pennsylvania, told Superprep.com he just added Michigan to his list. That was after Rodriguez had been wooing him to West Virginia.
3.) Support. Not necessarily from the 110,000 on a weekly basis but, for now, Lloyd Carr, who seemed to be the puppet master in the search. All of it means Rodriguez can devote more of his time to the playing field than in the AD's office begging for more resources.
After reading the CBSSports.com message boards there seemed to be a feeling that Rodriguez "owed" more to West Virginia. Horse spit.
• Rodriguez was a West Virginia native who was there seven years, got the program to its highest level ever. (That includes the 21 years Don Nehlen was there.) That makes Bobby Petrino practically looked indentured considering his four, long, hard years at Louisville.
• Rodriguez is no idiot. He didn't really want to go to Alabama last year but after word leaked out that he "agreed in principle" (whatever that means) to coach the Tide, Rodriguez used it as leverage to get construction of a new academic center and stadium suites fast tracked. Those are gifts that will keep on giving after Rodriguez's coaching career is over.
• Richy Rich didn't owe the school a thing because he knows the industry. Nine years ago, the story goes, he was promised the Tulane job after his boss Tommy Bowden left for Clemson. The job went instead to Chris Scelfo, who was fired last year.
Where would Rodriguez be if he gotten Tulane, instead of starting a career arc toward Morgantown? Certainly not at Michigan.
"There are very few Michigans," Nehlen told the Detroit News. "When you coach at West Virginia you walk on water in West Virginia, but when you coach at Michigan, you walk on water, period. There's a difference. Some people around here don't want to believe that."
Let's make sure everyone understands this: Rich Rodriguez got a promotion. He moved up. Got a better job. What would you do, Mr. 9-to-5?
Michigan is making a living at raiding West Virginia coaches. First it was John Beilein in basketball. Now it's Rodriguez.
In the pecking order of big-time college athletics, that's Darwin, baby.
Although I'm still not sure Miles is out of the running.
