Rich Rodriguez gives update on injured son, Rhett, following ICU visit

Louisiana-Monroe offensive coordinator Rich Rodriguez said his son, starting quarterback Rhett Rodriguez, is home after being in intensive care due to a lung injury, as first reported by ESPN’s Heather Dinich.

Rodriguez suffered a collapsed lung and chest trauma and was in the intensive care unit at Francis Medical Center.

Rich Rodriguez called it “an amazing recovery,” adding that the injury might have occurred on the first play of the game.

“He’s a tough guy,” Rodriguez said via ESPN.

“Our family would like to thank everyone who has reached out with their thoughts and prayers for Rhett, as he is currently in the ICU at the hospital because of a lung injury from last night’s game against Troy,” Rich Rodriguez wrote in a tweet on Sunday.

Rhett Rodriguez has thrown for 337 yards and one touchdown through three games, leading the Warhawks to a 2-1 record with wins over Jackson State and Troy. The Warhawks sole loss of the season so far came against Kentucky in the season opener.

Rodriguez graduate transferred from Arizona in January after spending four seasons with the Wildcats. Rhett Rodriguez played under his father, who was the head coach for the Wildcats in 2017, as well as Kevin Sumlin, who replaced Rich Rodriguez as head coach from 2018-2020.

Rhett Rodriguez playing sparingly at Arizona. As a redshirt freshman at Arizona, he appeared in seven games and started in one. He completed 43 of his 83 pass attempts for 516 yards and three touchdowns. He also had two interceptions on the season. Since 2018, he’s only played in two games.

Rhett Rodriguez won the starting quarterback job in the summer.

“My freshman year, I had a chance to be with my dad and that was our plan that we could be together,” Rhett Rodriguez told the Louisiana-Monroe team website this summer. “That didn’t work out and I kind of figured that was the end of it. Now, we’re getting the chance to be together and it’s all up from here. We’re excited and embracing the challenge. It is about building that new culture and embracing the challenge and that’s what we’re going to do.”

Rich Rodriguez is in his first season as offensive coordinator associate head coach to Terry Bowden for the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks. Rodriguez has had head coaching stints at Arizona, Michigan and West Virginia. In his head coaching career, Rodriguez holds a 163-119-2 record.