Pat McAfee reacts to West Virginia hiring Rich Rodriguez: 'Strap it up'

The West Virginia Mountaineers decided to bring back Rich Rodriguez for a second stint as the head football coach in Morgantown. It’s a move that has the approval of at least one former player, ESPN’s Pat McAfee.

Following the announcement that Rich Rodriguez would be returning to the program, Pat McAfee took to Twitter/X. There, he shared just how excited he is for the move.

“Strap it up,” Pat McAfee quoted West Virginia’s announcement. “Let’s f****** go.”

"That’s the way we play football at West Virginia University. We play hard all the time, every play."

🫡 @RealCoachRod pic.twitter.com/zinSBHtViF

— West Virginia Football (@WVUfootball) December 12, 2024

Rich Rodriguez previously coached the team from 2001-2007. While there, the Mountaineers had four AP Top 25 finishes in his seven seasons there. He also won the Big East four times and took the Mountaineers to six straight bowl games. In total, he went 60-26 overall and 34-14 in Big East play during Rodriguez’s first tenure with the school. In 2008, he would leave to coach Michigan.

Since that time, West Virginia has changed conferences, moving to the Big 12 ahead of the Big East breaking up. On top of that, college football has also changed with the addition of revenue sharing, NIL, and the Transfer Portal.

On top of his more than excited reaction that Rich Rodriguez is returning to Morgantown, Pat McAfee also announced that his show, The Pat McAfee Show, is going to be live from campus, specifically the Coliseum tomorrow.

“BREAKING: @RealCoachRod is coming HOME. “I need to go back and make it right” My progrum will be LIVE from the Coliseum tomorrow,” McAfee posted. “We will lead up to the Official Press Conference which will begin at 1:30PMest Gold and Blue gates open at 10:30AM.”

Part of why Pat McAfee is likely excited about the move is that he played for Rich Rodriguez. McAfee was at West Virginia from 2005 through 2008, meaning he played for three seasons under Rodriguez. In fact, he had a major impact on Rodriguez’s final game in Morgantown, missing two field goals in West Virginia’s heartbreaking 13-9 loss in the Backyard Brawl that cost the Mountaineers a perfect regular season. Despite that, he was a Lou Groza Award semi-finalist.

Since leaving West Virginia, Rich Rodriguez has been a head coach at Michigan, Arizona, and most recently Jacksonville State. He also has several stops as an assistant coach. He now takes over for Neal Brown, who went 37-25 during his six seasons with West Virginia. That includes going 6-6 in 2024 before being relieved of his duties ahead of the Mountaineers’ bowl game.