Rodriguez at home with Wildcats
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Rich Rodriguez looked out his office window toward the Catalina Mountains on a picture-perfect day and the Arizona football coach acknowledged he's comfortable in Tucson.
"I felt at home since the day we got here," Rodriguez said recently after his fourth spring practices concluded.
How could he not now, he said. Rodriguez says he has great support from the administration. The fans and city have embraced him, as have former Arizona players. His team has won consistently and, of course, there's the weather.
He sells it all to each recruit.
"I think people are happier here (in Tucson and southwest) and I think it's because of the weather. There's sunshine every day," Rodriguez said. "I think that puts you in a better mood. I really do think that."
Rodriguez was in a good mood most of the spring.
"I am comfortable. A lot has to do with the staff, who I work with. My wife (Rita) and kids (Raquel and Rhett) are comfortable and that's good," Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez signed a contract extension last summer that puts him at Arizona until 2019 and raises his base salary to an eventual $1.9 million plus incentives.
He plans to stay at Arizona because of all the aforementioned factors. But that doesn't prevent rumors of other schools looking into going after him. This past winter, Florida was rumored to be interested. There have been others (Louisville the year before) and likely will be more.
His success at Arizona -- three consecutive bowl appearances, a 26-14 record and resurgence in a once-stagnant program -- helped regain his coaching credentials after Michigan dismissed him after three years.
"I think all that is flattering because you'd rather (leave) that way than the other way," he said, smiling. "(But) because I had been there and done that in some respects when we moved from West Virginia to Michigan, I'm probably smarter about my future. Everybody says you have to be careful because the grass isn't always greener and you have to look at that. I'm almost 52 years old and I'm not going to do this forever like Bobby Bowden (former Florida State coach) and Joe Paterno (late coach of Penn State) ... maybe 60, eight to 10 more years, that's it.
Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez yells at the referee during the Fiesta Bowl against Boise State. Rodriguez hates to lose. He still is "pissed about the Fiesta Bowl" loss.
"If my wife and family are happy and my kids are doing well in school and in their extracurricular activities, and the staff is happy (that's important)."
In the same breath he also said, "I don't think you'd be wrong in saying 'never say never' at this point. Who knows if there is something there that is so appealing and so great that you are even flattered to be (mentioned) about it? But there ain't that many of them at this level or the NFL that I would consider."
Again, he mentioned quality of life.
"Palm trees and sunshine," he said. "Are you kidding me?
Emphatically, Rodriguez said, "it's fun to come to work. I enjoy living here."
"It's maybe the fastest four years in my coaching career," he added. "Our limited success and the quality of life are important. When time goes that fast it's a good thing, but there's (the other side) where you're getting older quicker, too."
Winning helps with everything. And fewer people enjoy winning more than Rodriguez.
"It might sound like I'm joking but my happiness is based on winning," he said. "If we were losing all the time I'd be miserable. As long as we can have success and win, we will be happy."
Coaches are wired that way. And when one loses "nothing is good."
Rodriguez hates to lose. He still is "pissed about the Fiesta Bowl" loss to Boise State. "I'll be over it by August," he said.
The only area Rodriguez eases up on the importance of winning? He thinks about it for a while and then for a little longer before "golf" comes out. "But there is not much," he added.
He loves the competitive nature of everything. He said it is one reason his practices keep score.
"I want them to feel winning and losing," he said. "I want them to be pissed when we lose. If they are not, there is something wrong."
It's rare when things are done for fun competitively. Rodriguez enjoys playing golf with his athletic son, a sophomore and quarterback at Tucson's Catalina Foothills High.
"He's getting to the point where he's not quite ready to beat me but he can hit it further than me," he said. "That's kind of disappointing (he smiled)."
Rodriguez looks forward to taking Rhett to football camps around the country this summer.
"What's fun with him is that I'm getting to work with him and seeing him grow as a player," Rodriguez said. "He's a pretty talented young man."