We’re at the late stage in the season when we learn of coaches earning bonuses for victory totals, bowl berths, conference championships and College Football Playoff appearances, among other perks.
Team APR scores of at least 930 merit a bonus for many coaches as does a team GPA of 2.50 or higher. Coaches do not attend class and complete schoolwork for their student-athletes, but they are responsible for recruiting players who will uphold the academic standards of the institution. That kind of indirect bonus is understandable because it exhibits institutional control and having a positive influence on an athlete’s future beyond college.
It’s arguable the coach is simply doing his job producing victories and standout students, but athletic directors and administrations must compete with other schools to offer the best compensation package to keep their coach and assure stability for potential recruits.
Where bonuses become an issue is when they reward mediocrity or something out of a coach’s direct control. They take home added income, for example, if a certain amount of fans attend their games. That’s the equivalent of awarding the home team an automatic touchdown if the game is sold out. Coaches have no direct influence on ticket sales, yet some are provided a bonus to their salary if fans fill the seats.
Nebraska is first in line among 5-7 teams to play in a bowl because not enough teams that are at least 6-6 can fill the glut of bowl games. Nebraska officials and coach Mike Riley did the right thing recently agreeing the school will not honor the coaches’ contracts which call for bowl bonuses. Riley’s contract calls for him to be paid a $150,000 bonus if in a bowl outside the College Football Playoff. Nebraska would have paid $435,000 in bonuses to Riley and his assistants.
School officials commented that contract wording might be tweaked in the future to cover going to a bowl with a losing record. The same should go all for all programs. Winning only five games should not be rewarded with a bowl appearance in the first place. A bonus in this case is to the extreme, similar to other questionable contract terms provided to coaches.
New Mexico coach Bob Davie has an incentive worth $25,000 if the Lobos average 19,000 fans, not including students. Another $25,000 is “achieved” if attendance averages 21,000. Capacity at University Stadium is listed at 39,224, which means Davie can pocket an extra $50,000 for just having the seats at about 65 percent full. Students occupy only three lower sections of the stadium.
Texas Tech has a more sensible incentive which calls for coach Kliff Klingsbury to receive a bonus of $50,000 if the Red Raiders average 95 percent capacity for the season. Still, the question remains, why is a coach compensated for matters out of his direct control, such as attendance?
Of course, the coach must produce a winning team to fill the seats. That goes hand in hand. Bonuses should be based on direct performance and results, which again, include victories and implementing a program that stresses high academic performance.
Get this: Nevada coach Brian Polian receives a bonus of $15,000 if his team appears on a weekday game televised by ESPN. That is completely out of his control because the network decides its programming schedule.
Wyoming coach Craig Bohl receives the same bonus — $40,000 — for maintaining a team GPA of at least 2.70 as he does if the Cowboys generate season ticket sales of 7,000 to 7,999.
What should have a much greater value between grades and attendance? You don’t need a 2.70 GPA to realize that question is a no-brainer.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.