The Arizona Wildcats are favorites to win the RichRod Bowl.
Arizona (4-1) is a 2.5-point favorite to beat West Virginia (3-2) in Morgantown on Saturday, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. The over/under for total points is 59.5 points.
It will be West Virginia’s first matchup with Arizona since hiring head coach Rich Rodriguez, who coached the Wildcats from 2012-17. It’s also Rodriguez’s first game against the Wildcats since he was fired following the 2017 season.
Rodriguez replaced the fired Mike Stoops and was hired by Arizona in 2012 and led the Wildcats to five postseason appearances and three bowl victories — and a Pac-12 South championship in 2014.
Rodriguez was fired by Arizona following the 2017 season, but quickly returned to the sidelines as an offensive coordinator at Ole Miss and head coach at Louisiana Monroe and Jacksonville State in Alabama.
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Following a 27-10 record at Jacksonville State, along with West Virginia firing Neal Brown, the stars aligned for Rodriguez’s return to WVU last season, his first Power 4 head coaching gig since Arizona.
Arizona also has two players connected to West Virginia: wide receiver Rodney Gallagher III played three seasons for the Mountaineers, including last season under Rodriguez, and punter Chase Ridley was previously committed to WVU’s 2026 recruiting class.
The Mountaineers have a Tucson connection on their this season: former UA fullback and Canyon del Oro High School product Kayden Luke, who led the Dorados to a Class 4A state championship, is in his first season with the Mountaineers after two seasons with the Wildcats.
The Wildcats lost their only game against West Virginia, 31-26, in Tucson in 2024.
West Virginia is coming off a 45-42 shootout loss to Iowa State in Ames. After starting 3-0, West Virginia has lost two straight games to Oklahoma State and Iowa State.
WVU has the top rushing offense in the Big 12, averaging 294 rushing yards per game, which ranks third nationally behind Army and Air Force. The Wildcats have the third-best rushing defense in the Big 12, holding opponents to 79 rushing yards per game.
The Wildcats (4-1) turn to their second Big 12 road game of the season against the West Virginia Mountaineers (3-2) in Morgantown Saturday morning at 9 a.m. on TNT, TruTV and HBO Max.
Contact Justin Spears, the Star's Arizona football beat reporter, at jspears@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @JustinESports
Justin Spears
Sports Reporter
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