Arizona Wildcats back coach Rodriguez, whose job appears to be safe

With the Arizona Wildcats in the midst of one of the worst seasons in program history, it’s natural to wonder whether UA coach Rich Rodriguez will have a job by week’s end.

Rodriguez indicated Monday that his job is safe. He said “everything has been positive” when it comes to discussions with Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne and “anybody associated with the school.”

“When you don’t have success, the criticism comes with it,” said Rodriguez, who is preparing his 2-9 team for the season finale Friday against rival Arizona State. “And then questions about job security come with it.

“Last year wasn’t a great year; it was a very average year. (Arizona finished 7-6.) This year was an awful year. If one awful year makes people want to get rid of you …

“I think we have a great future here. This is a year you couldn’t foreshadow or certainly expect or want. But the reason I’m optimistic is because I know what’s in the program daily, I know what’s coming in the program in this recruiting cycle and I know the administration and support that I’ll have to help us go forward.

“It’ll make us enjoy it when we win a championship in the Pac-12 even more so. I would just rather not have this kind of year to make us enjoy it that much.”

Arizona has lost eight consecutive games, including seven in a row by double figures. The Wildcats need to defeat the Sun Devils in the Territorial Cup to avoid going winless in conference play for the first time in almost 60 years.

Arizona’s struggles have prompted calls from fans that Rodriguez should be fired. Reached by the Star later Monday, Byrne declined to comment. There has been no indication from within the administration that Rodriguez’s job is in jeopardy.

Last month, Byrne dismissed as “ridiculous” the idea that Rodriguez could be on the proverbial hot seat.

Rodriguez’s players have come to his defense.

“If there’s any advice that I would give to our fans and our community: Don’t give up on him,” senior defensive tackle Sani Fuimaono said. “He’s a great coach. Unfortunately, we’ve come up short this year. We hope to come up with a win this weekend.”

Said senior tight end Josh Kern: “I’ve been around Coach Rod and this staff for five years. I completely bought in. I love these guys. From an outside perspective, they don’t really know what’s going on. They just see what the product is on the field and they jump to conclusions, and I get that. But they couldn’t be any more wrong.

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“I think Coach Rod is the guy for this school. He’s done so much already for the school, and I think the future’s bright.”

The UA would owe Rodriguez almost $9 million if he were fired without cause on Dec. 1, according to USA Today’s database on coaches’ buyouts.

RichRod on RhettRod

Rodriguez became emotional while discussing son Rhett, the quarterback at Catalina Foothills High who’s coming to Arizona next year.

With wife Rita watching from the back of the room, Rodriguez needed about 45 seconds to compose himself. Once he did, Rodriguez praised his son’s work ethic and how he has matured as a person. Regarding Rhett and daughter Raquel, a UA student and cheerleading captain, Rodriguez said he is most proud of “who they are.”

“It’s not easy,” Rodriguez said. “Everybody wants to make the assumptions, you have this, you have that. It’s probably helped (Rhett) in his growth because he understands the game. But there’s also a certain level of pressure that inherently goes with coaches’ kids, particularly at this level. That’s not always the easiest either when you’re a teenager.”

Rhett Rodriguez accounted for seven touchdowns in Catalina Foothills’ 62-37 victory over Gilbert Higley in the Class 4A state semifinals last Friday. Foothills faces top-ranked Scottsdale Saguaro for the state championship at 10 a.m. Saturday in Glendale.

With the Wildcats playing Friday night, Rich Rodriguez will be able to attend his son’s final high school game.

“Having seen him and his other teammates, he’s grown with over the last two or three years, seeing them have the joy that they have. … There’s nothing better than that,” Rodriguez said. “There’s nothing better than a winning locker room. We haven’t had very many of those this year.”

Extra points

• The Wildcats had a meeting and a walk-through practice Monday, which is normally their day off. Their off day this week will be Saturday.
• Rodriguez said the team returned to Tucson about 4:30 a.m. Sunday after its 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time kickoff against Oregon State on Saturday. He went home for “an hour or two” before coming to the office. ASU traveled home from Washington on Saturday after kicking off three hours earlier in Seattle.
• Rodriguez said there were no concerns about quarterback Anu Solomon suffering a concussion during the Oregon State game. He was slow to get up a handful of times and eventually exited because of a toe injury.
• Rodriguez said senior “Spur” safety Tellas Jones did not start against OSU because he had missed too much practice time due to injuries. He is listed as a co-starter this week with freshman Tristan Cooper.