Rich Rodriguez went 15-22 at Michigan. Photo by Matt Kartozian-US PRESSWIRE
The Michigan Wolverines found themselves with schedule openings this week when Notre Dame opted out of the rivalry after the 2014 season.
That inspired AP national college football writer Ralph Russo to suggest six possibilities to fill Michigan’s schedule, and Javier Morales offered some differing choices at LindysSports.com.
Perhaps first-year Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez, who was booted from Michigan following the 2010 season after three years on the job, would be interested in helping fill the vacancies.
He does say he would he like to play one game against a BCS-conference opponent each year, so why not his old school?
Uh … no.
“The drama that would be involved in that game would be centered on the coach, and it shouldn’t be on the coach,” Rodriguez said after Wednesday’s practice. “It should be around the kids and the schools.”
Notre Dame decided to put the Michigan series on hold from 2015 to 2017 while it fills its new obligations to play five games each season against ACC competition.
Arizona, meanwhile, doesn’t have a big-name team on its known future schedules.
The Wildcats will begin a home-and-home vs. UNLV next season with a game in Las Vegas, and they kick off a series against Nevada in 2014. (It’s a long way away, but the Wolf Pack could be very good in 2014, when quarterback Cody Fajardo would be a senior and running back Stefphon Jefferson — the nation’s current leading rusher — would be a junior.)
UA also begins a three-game series against new FBS member Texas-San Antonio next season.
Further down the road, Arizona has a home-and-home series against Hawaii in 2019-20.
Rodriguez said before the season that Arizona’s schedule is “already plenty tough” because of the nine-game conference schedule.
“We want to try to get two non-conference games at home each year with non-BCS conference teams,” he said. “Then we want a home-and-home with another BCS conference team. I like the fact that we can be more flexible with our schedule and to have the ability to schedule who we want.”