The football gods have delivered on the karma: ; RichRod bailed on us; Michigan bailed on RichRod

LIFE has a way of evening things out. Our parents andgrandparents have loaded us down with quaint wisdom to cope withlife's inequities:

"What goes around comes around." "You reap what you sow." Or themore malicious "He'll get his."

We believe these axioms and others like them for two reasons:

They give us hope when we have been dealt an injustice. And theyare often true.

For many West Virginia fans, Michigan's firing of Rich Rodriguezwas preordained. Anyone who abandoned his state and alma mater asRodriguez was going to be made to pay at some point.

It was just a matter of when.

That "when" actually happened last month at the Michigan teambanquet. The commanding and demanding head coach got weepy, heldhands, and sang along with the inspirational tune "You Raise Me Up."

Good for a self-help retreat.

A football banquet?

Not so much.

The formality came Wednesday after Michigan Athletic DirectorDave Brandon first tempered media reports that Rodriguez had beendismissed.

Rodriguez has had three lousy years at Michigan - a losingrecord, NCAA probation and the worst bowl loss in school history.

Could this have been the same Rich Rod who coached West Virginiato three straight 11-win seasons, three straight Top 10 finishes anda brush with the national championship game?

Rodriguez's success at West Virginia, juxtaposed with hisfailures at Michigan, highlight just how bad Rodriguez's decisionwas to leave Morgantown the way he did, when he did.

I wonder how Mountaineer fans will treat Rich Rod now?

I've been on a path of forgiveness for awhile, but still foundmyself rooting for Mississippi State to run up the score againstRich in the Gator Bowl.

Clearly, I still have some work to do.

Some will never get over Rodriguez's abandonment of their belovedMountaineers, his and Rita's self-absorbed whining about theconditions at WVU, and his clumsy exit.

But perhaps others will see the Rodriguez firing as justice. Thescales have tilted back to even.

Three years of misery and a firing will be just enough flesh forsome to see the score as settled. The football gods will havedelivered on the karma.

Funny ol' world.

Kercheval is host of TalkLine, broadcast by the MetroNewsStatewide Radio Network from 10 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday.The show can be heard locally on WCHS 580 AM.