No dice: Rodriguez lawsuit heads back to state court

Beilein, who also went to Michigan, ultimately agreed to pay the WVU Foundation $1.5 million.

"This court will not consider what may have transpired as part of an agreed settlement with respect to Coach Beilein," Bailey wrote.

"The contract in question, under which the 'buyout' moneys are sought, is a contract between Coach Rodriguez and the West Virginia University Board of Governors," he wrote. "That contract, assuming that it is valid and enforceable (an issue not presently before this court), requires Coach Rodriguez to pay the money to the university."

WVU argues it's owed the full $4 million because Rodriguez broke his contract early.

Rodriguez, however, has repeatedly claimed WVU broke the terms of his contract first by failing to honor a variety of verbal promises, including one to reduce or eliminate the buyout.

WVU denies such a promise was made and insists it was working to accommodate the coach's demands when he quit.

The next step in the case likely will be WVU's response to a counterclaim Rodriguez filed, arguing the WVU Foundation should be made a party to the lawsuit.

The foundation, which had been run in part by WVU President Mike Garrison's chief of staff, Craig Walker, is not legally obligated to open its books to public scrutiny under ordinary circumstances.

But it funnels money from boosters to WVU athletic programs, and Rodriguez contends a review of those books is the only way to prove whether the university has been harmed by his departure.