Jilted lover

West Virginia, get over Rich Rod already. Seriously.


I have a unique perspective, being a native West Virginian who went to Michigan. I know how important the Mounties are to the state. Imagine a place jealous of Pennsylvania, and you'll get an idea for how desperate West Virginia is for things to be proud of. I say this with all due love for my home state.

I get it. WVians are entitled to a high level of disgust at RR and Michigan. I would hate Rich Rod too, if he wasn't the best hope for my beloved Wolverines to return to glory. But threatening his relatives, one of them a 12 year old girl who needed an escort at school? Are you effin serious?


Grow up West Virginia. If you were a person, you would have a restraining order against you. You're acting out like an especially ticked off woman scorned. I do my best to talk you up out here on the west coast, but you're making yourselves look pretty bad with this tantrum you're throwing.


And to the non-WVians, this must seem quite bizarre. Let me try to explain how it works in West by God. Rich Rod was a native son, and as such, had one key extra expectation of him, that being loyalty. Everyone and their brother leaves WV for greener pastures, so those who stay behind have an intense bond of loyalty. Rich Rod was supposed to be a "true" WVian.

They may be blue collar, cheap beer swillin', satellite tv watchin', "redneck", eaters of roadkill. But if you lead them to victory, WVians will love you with an intensity that no one else will. Think Scottish highlands ala Braveheart. They'll throw fists (or frozen oranges) to defend your honor, and stick up for you against all opposition, all with a delightful hick accent.

The flipside is that they expect loyalty. Afterall, they stayed in WV, why shouldn't you? Violate the loyalty, and the claws come out. As venomous as the hatred for RR is, this is how strongly they loved him. All that bile was reserved for WV's opponents, and will be again soon. He brought glory to an otherwise depressing state (again, WV, I love you babe; but you know it's true). RR's fatal mistake was to be successful, then leave.

Also, you have to understand that WVU is an extra level of crazy. They'll try to tip over the ambulance with an injured player from the opposing team. They'll throw trashcans and whiskey bottles at the other team's coaches. They'll break into the empty stadium after beating Miami away, tear down the goalpost, and carry it to the main drag and leave it there. I forget his name, but one of the commentators on ESPN has told a story about showing up for a game as an Orangeman, and being hit in the face with a frozen orange coming off the bus. It used to be common for the refs to penalize the fans. Morgantown has taken couch fires to an art form.

So imagine this atmosphere, and just when WV finally has what they want, a Mountaineer team that's a regular national title contender, and Rich Rod ups and leaves for .... Michigan? Who they hell are they to take our coach? Bastards! It doesn't help that he flirted with the Alabama job last year, and then promised to stay at WVU "for a long time" (or something to that effect).



I sympathize with West Virginia very much on this one. I always go for the Mounties. But this vandalizing and harassing RR's family has got to stop. Show a little class.



I'd like to end with this amusing local commercial from WV. Believe it or not, the quality of local commercials has gone up considerably since I lived there (the Dime Bank, anyone?). My only question is: which state did they find the attractive woman from?

Haha! I keed, I keed...



Related: I will not be ignored, Rich!