Midway through his fourth season coaching the Louisiana State University football team, Brian Kelly was dismissed following a 49-25 blowout loss to Texas A&M. His firing triggered a release clause in his contract guaranteeing him a buyout of $54m payable in monthly instalments up to 2031.
LSU is a publicly funded institution in a state with the highest poverty level in the country, a place where one in four children go to bed hungry each night. The food bank on the Baton Rouge campus received over 45,000 visits from desperate students in the last academic year.
When news of Kelly’s sweetheart departure gift broke and hackles were raised, Scott Woodward, the college’s athletic director who gave him that golden parachute, came under increased scrutiny. He was fired five days later. At which point it emerged that Woodward, as per the magnanimous terms of his own employment, would be paid $6.5m to go away. Nice work if you can get it. Unless you happen to be a taxpayer in Louisiana wondering how an educational institution you fund can pay such exorbitant sums to underperforming employees of the sports department.
Governor Jeff Landry went on ESPN to voice his concerns about that very issue and the LSU Board of Supervisors quickly denied any tax dollars will be used, claiming the buyouts are to be funded by contributions from private donors. Apparently, one wealthy alumnus is willing to pay most of the money.
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Inherent obscenity
Think on that. Fans of the college football team can club together to fork out $60m to get rid of two people who failed to deliver enough victories. At a time when departments all over the university are being told to tighten their belts following federal budget cuts. Imagine what that money could be used for elsewhere on campus. Like in classrooms or filling the bellies of mendicant undergraduates.
Somehow, those who run LSU don’t even recognise the inherent obscenity of such ridiculous sums being deployed to see off a mediocre gridiron coach rather than, say, improving the academic environment, or doling out hardship scholarships to students in need.
Indeed, when Kelly’s team defeated the University of South Carolina Gamecocks in what turned out to be his last victory early in October, fans of both sides participated in a “food fight”. An unfortunate term for what was a noble enterprise to raise money and bring non-perishables to replenish the depleted food pantry that is sometimes used by up to 450 hungry LSU students on a busy day.
Two weeks before Kelly’s ousting, Penn State University, an institution financed by the taxpayers of Pennsylvania, fired James Franklin as coach of its football team. As per his contract, that left them on the hook for a buyout of $49m. That amount was reduced to a much handier $9m once Franklin was snapped up by Virginia Tech, yet another publicly funded college that will pay him $41.5m over the next five years.
It’s a very special sport indeed where a character can get run out of one town six games into a season then pick up a salary of more than $8m for coaching more so-called student athletes down the road.
Then again, that wage wouldn’t have Franklin in the top 10 highest-paid in his profession right now. At last count, 10 of his peers in the college game earn more than $10m a year. Little wonder that buyout compensation has already reached nearly $200m for the current campaign, even before the start of the traditional end of season firing spree.
College authorities defend the practice by claiming boosters with more money than sense underwrite these expensive coaching hires and golden handshakes too. But the increasingly gaudy salary numbers of those prowling the sidelines at state-sponsored universities has drawn the attention of politicians.
“Are there other measures Congress could consider with respect to addressing excessive compensation for coaches?” asked Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington. “Are there measures Congress could consider to address excessive compensation paid to coaches or other athletic department personnel who are fired (i.e. buyouts)?”
What appears ludicrous carry-on to rational outsiders is justified by those involved in college football because, like any business, they claim you must pay top dollar and offer huge incentives (like attractive buyout clauses) to lure the best coaches to your campus. If the gamble pays off, a successful gridiron team garners national attention for the university and causes (a very temporary) spike in enrolment, especially from out-of-state students paying more for the privilege. Should the coach not measure up, you merely tap wealthy alumni, a peculiar species of American male who obsess over boasting about the sporting rather than academic prowess of their alma maters, to write eight-figure cheques to make the mistake go away.
That’s the business plan. But LSU’s divorce from Kelly has turned into an acrimonious affair with lawsuits flying about whether he was fired with or without cause, a crucial difference that will determine whether he gets the full $54m he’s due.
In tandem with fighting that legal battle, the university has been busy courting Lane Kifflin of Ole Miss, offering the most sought-after coach on the college scene a seven-year contract worth $98m. Apparently Kifflin is the answer to all their problems, and his arrival would guarantee success. Just like Kelly’s was supposed to be. Meanwhile, the food bank on the first floor of the student union continues to do brisk business.
