Back in 2017, a former administrative assistant for Rich Rodriguez at Arizona made allegations regarding sexual harassment, a hostile workplace, and that Rodriguez had an affair that she was forced to keep secret.
That lawsuit was recently dismissed, and most importantly to note - no settlement was paid by Rodriguez or the University to settle the case, as both sides only paid their own costs and attorney fees, Adam Rittenberg shared late last night.
The dismissal of the lawsuit brings to an end a four-year ordeal that dragged Rodriguez's name through the mud for the final few months of his tenure as the head coach of the Wildcats.
The assistant chose not to cooperate with the school's investigation, and the school ultimately found that they could not substantiate the allegations made. Arizona decided that they were uncomfortable with the "direction and climate of the football program" at the time, and Rich Rod was let go at Arizona in early January of 2018. He left with an overall mark of 43-35 in six seasons and after winning 10 games over his final two seasons.
A few weeks after he was officially let go, the administrative assistant filed a $8.5 million notice of claim against Arizona (her second lawsuit after the first was dismissed as well after the proper procedure was not followed) stating that they were liable for the head coach's conduct.
After learning that the case has been dismissed, Arizona shared the following with ESPN:
"The University has consistently maintained that this lawsuit lacked merit. We are extremely pleased that [Rodriguez's former assistant] apparently has reached a similar conclusion and has voluntarily dismissed her complaint without any settlement agreement or payment being made between the parties."
Rodriguez's attorney added the following:
"This brings closure to a 4-year saga, affirming what we have maintained from the beginning -- that the plaintiff fabricated claims of harassment in an attempt to exact a large financial settlement. The scheme failed. She did not receive a single cent from my client or UA. Unfortunately, Coach Rodriguez paid a steep reputational price as the subject of publicized false allegations. As an added cost, his wife, Rita, and their children, as well as former UA staff members and players, were unnecessarily harmed."
Rich Rod spent one season as the offensive coordinator on Matt Luke's staff at Ole Miss in 2019 and prior to this season joined Terry Bowden's staff at ULM, where his son Rhett, a transfer from Arizona, is playing quarterback.