New West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez admitted Friday he made a mistake by leaving West Virginia for Michigan 17 years ago.

Based on the welcome he got from the thousands of fans who attended his introductory news conference Friday, much seemed to be forgiven — except for one man who yelled at Rodriguez just as he starting speaking. The crowd quickly drowned out the heckler, who was escorted from the campus arena.

Rodriguez took the jeers in stride, responding with a joke aimed at West Virginia’s biggest rival: “OK, any other Pitt fans can leave the building.”

The crowd, which included Hall of Fame coach Don Nehlen and former players such as Avon Cobourne and Owen Schmitt, roared in response.

And that’s how the second tour of Rodriguez at his alma mater got started.

“This is really surreal,” said Rodriguez, who got emotional and paused a few times during his speech. “I never should have left.”

Rodriguez went 60-26 from 2001 to 2007. The fanbase was devastated, first when West Virginia bungled a chance to play for the BCS national championship by losing to heavy underdog Pittsburgh 13-9 in the 2007 season finale at home, and again when Rodriguez was gone two weeks later for Ann Arbor.

Rodriguez, 61, who was named coach on Thursday after spending three seasons at Jacksonville State, said he has grown both as a person and a coach throughout his long career, “and in particular in the 17 years since I made the mistake of leaving.”

Rodriguez carries some baggage. His three years at Michigan, where he was fired after the 2010 season, were marred by NCAA violations for exceeding limits on practice and training time at college football’s winningest program.

He was fired after six years at Arizona in January 2018 after his former administrative assistant filed a claim with the Arizona attorney general’s office accusing him of sexually harassing her and creating a hostile work environment. The university said it couldn’t substantiate the claims but was concerned about the “direction and climate of the football program.” The lawsuit was later dismissed.

Without going into detail, athletic director Wren Baker said Rodriguez was “sincere and genuine in owning those mistakes and the subsequent lessons he learned from them.”

In 2000, Rodriguez took his first major college head coaching job after being a Clemson assistant, and several dozen people attended his introduction at West Virginia in a room overlooking Mountaineer Field.

On Friday, West Virginia went all-out. Concession stands sold beer, the marching band played and fans packed the stands.

ESPN personality Pat McAfee, a kicker and punter on the 2007 team, aired his daily show live from the arena floor, including an interview with Rodriguez prior to the start of the main event.

“We’re about to go get some championships, and that’s what today is all about,” McAfee said.

Head coaches who come back for a second stint at a school aren’t so rare.

Scott Frost recently returned to UCF. Among other coaches who made repeat visits over the past decade include Mack Brown at North Carolina, Greg Schiano at Rutgers, Brady Hoke at San Diego State, Jeff Tedford at Fresno State, Bill Snyder at Kansas State, and Randy Edsall at UConn.

Bobby Petrino twice was head coach at Louisville and served as coach and later offensive coordinator at Arkansas.

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Associated Press

Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (2-7) at West Virginia Mountaineers (7-2, 1-0 Big 12)

Morgantown, West Virginia; Saturday, 5 p.m. EST

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mountaineers -25; over/under is 135.5

BOTTOM LINE: Bethune-Cookman comes into the matchup with West Virginia as losers of three straight games.

The Mountaineers are 5-0 on their home court. West Virginia is 7-1 when it turns the ball over less than its opponents and averages 11.1 turnovers per game.

The Wildcats are 0-6 on the road. Bethune-Cookman has a 2-6 record in games decided by 10 or more points.

West Virginia scores 77.9 points per game, 3.9 more points than the 74.0 Bethune-Cookman gives up. Bethune-Cookman has shot at a 39.7% clip from the field this season, 1.3 percentage points higher than the 38.4% shooting opponents of West Virginia have averaged.

TOP PERFORMERS: Tucker DeVries averages 3.3 made 3-pointers per game for the Mountaineers, scoring 14.9 points while shooting 47.3% from beyond the arc.

Brayon Freeman is averaging 16.2 points for the Wildcats.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Teachers in Harrisonburg, Virginia, do not have to ask for or use students’ preferred pronouns after a lawsuit settlement Tuesday.

Deborah Figliola, Kristine Marsh and Laura Nelson filed a suit in June 2022 against the Harrisonburg City School Board saying their rights protected in the Commonwealth’s Free Speech Clause and the Virginia Religious Freedom Restoration Act had been violated by compelling speech to which they object.

The lawsuit stemmed from the teachers having to undergo training to ensure they were compliant with the school board’s nondiscrimination policy, according to the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which represented the teachers. The training entailed requiring teachers to ask a student’s “preferred” name and pronouns and to always use them. 

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN TO END DIVERSITY STATEMENTS: ‘POTENTIAL TO LIMIT FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION’

The teachers said they were also expected to do so without notifying parents or seeking their consent. The Harrisonburg City Public Schools’ nondiscrimination policy threatened discipline against teachers and even “termination” for noncompliance.

The two sides reached an agreement when the school board granted the teachers religious accommodations Tuesday. 

In the settlement, the school board maintained that they do not require staff to ask for or use students’ preferred names and pronouns and “[do] not support hiding or withholding information from parents.” The board agreed to continue to inform staff about religious accommodations that are available.

ADF senior counsel Kate Anderson, director of the ADF Center for Parental Rights, said that all teachers are protected “under the Constitution to do their job in alignment with their religious beliefs, including how they refer to their students and the vital information they share with parents.”

“We are pleased to favorably resolve this case on behalf of our clients and ensure that the Harrisonburg City School Board will respect every teacher’s right to speak consistent with her faith,” Anderson said.

HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS FROM THE NORTH FLOCK TO SOUTHERN UNIVERSITIES: REPORT

The Alliance Defending Freedom scored a legal victory in the Rockingham County Circuit Court Tuesday, representing Christian teachers who challenged the Harrisonburg City Public Schools. 

The Harrisonburg City Public School Board said in a statement, “The Harrisonburg City School Division is pleased to see this litigation resolved. From the start, our focus has been to support all students and employees with dignity and respect. Before the litigation began, we were open to collaborating on accommodations for diverse needs, as evidenced by our correspondence with ADF in early 2022.

“Our commitment is reflected in School Board policies and actions, including the adoption of a formal religious accommodations policy (Policy 682) over a year ago and the implementation of training for employees this August. These efforts demonstrate our dedication to fostering a respectful and inclusive environment.

“This case concludes because the processes we have always encouraged—both informal and formal—proved effective. We are gratified by this resolution and wish it could have been accomplished without litigation.”

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ADF won a similar case in November involving a Virginia school board firing a teacher for refusing to use a student’s preferred pronouns.

An ADF attorney told Fox News Digital at the time that the settlement had “seismic implications.”

“It protects all teachers in Virginia and its rationale should guide other courts addressing similar issues,” ADF president and CEO Kristen Waggoner said.

The Virginia-based West Point School Board agreed to pay a former high school teacher, Peter Vlaming, $575,000 in damages and attorney’s fees after he refused to call a transgender student by their preferred pronouns.