For the Broad Interest of ALL UK programs, We Should Not Spend 20 million (+) to Fire Cal.

[Grumpyolddawg]

OK I really didn't want to read up on the Cal buyout if fired thing, I've only heard fleeting details on social media over the weekend.

If fired he does NOT get $33M. He gets approximately $6M a yr for life of the contract, 6 yrs. OH AND IT ISN'T A LIFETIME CONTRACT. his contract rolls over adding a yr after a year has expired. Same terms as Stoops!!

And, it has offset language, the $6M is reduced by market rates if he gets another job. What's that mean, if fired he couldn't go back to UMass for only $100k/yr. The terms of the contract are to treat any new job that he is being paid comparable prices of other coaches in his conference/league, and reduce the $6m. Or TV network job!

Folks, even if Calipari is fired and he dead retired from life, $6M a yr ain't nothin. Esp with new ESPN SEC TV money. Oh and the new CFB playoff payout money.

This fear of $33M being instantly sucked out of coffers and UK football being broke for years after is completely absolutely wrong when examining the facts. The only reason he wouldn't be fired is if the AD had zero confidence he could hire anyone better.

I don't know the details of his contract, but most contracts are paid off at firing. Jimbo walked away with is 75m or whatever it was, Gus got his 30m from AU, UGA paid Richt the remainder of his contract. Tenn avoided paying Pruitt off but he was getting the remainder of his contract. But UK's AD has been pretty smart with his hires.

 

[EdgeHD]

My personal opinion is that Cal should have the integrity to retire. If he won't retire, he should be terminated. His performance would cut it at some schools but not at this school. Over the past 5 years, he has continued to recruit well but he has been a poor program manager otherwise. Not just mediocre. Poor. But I don't have $34 million to donate. So I get both sides of it. The Athletics Director has to manage the budget and account for all the money. I will not presume to walk in his shoes or to be qualified to second guess him.

 

[The-Hack]

Maybe this summer LeBron will finally be ready to be coached by Cal & order the Lakers to make it happen

Wouldn’t Cal fit and feel better living on a coast?

It would make me feel better, if he did!

 

[The-Hack]

If $33M were sitting available on the sidelines not funding NIL these last 3 yrs...it would stay in the pockets of doners the next 5 yrs not going to football, no matter what happens to Calipari

This argument became especially ironic as it was so few made days prior to the launch of a 22 million football NIL fundraising effort over the next three years.

Could the UK community stand 34 million spread over 6 years to fire Cal along with 22 million spread over three, to support football NIL?

Probably, but the posts in this thread suggesting such funds are "pocket change" are pretty damn silly.

These are serious sums of money from a substantial but finite source, and are not mutually exclusive.

 

[Bluesbrother]

Cal doesn’t have an offset clause so if he took another job UK would only owe the difference. That alleviates the financial costs.

Cal doesn’t strike me as the type to not take a job after getting canned. He’s too proud.

The fact that he could be "proud" seems to imply he's delusional and dysfunctional.

 

[Tskware]

Read in LHL this AM that at the moment, Mark Stoops buyout is $44M, got an extension two years ago right before the ill fated Vanderbilt fiasco. Barnhart was a little defensive about the long term contracts and hefty buyouts, not surprisingly.

I like Stoops and he has done a good job . . . but $44M??????

I wish I had been able to negotiate on behalf of clients with Barnhart, I would have retired long before did.

 

[Catfanlou]

At the moment, I don't see a scenario where the benefits of keeping Cal outweigh the loss of fan confidence, brand recognition, NIL opportunities, donors, ticket sales, and more over the remaining contract term.


There's more to the Calipari situation than just the $33 million owed. As football fans, we know how long it can take to start filling a stadium after a program loses the fans. I can't remember how long it took Stoops to average Brooks-level attendance after the Joker years, but it was a long while.


There's a lot at play here. Mitch is damned if he does fire and damned if he doesn't. The wrong move(s) could turn UK into Indiana or UCLA, but I think the writing is on the wall for CJC. The question we have to ask as a fanbase, as I see it, is this: do we guarantee falling into obscurity with new age Cal or take a chance on a new coach to forestall/ prevent that scenario? Yeah, it'll suck, but I've run a couple mental cost/benefit analyses, and the math ain't mathing with the current trajectory. I'm afraid Cal is too set in his ways to correct course.

We never did get back to “seventy thousand strong” and reduced capacity because of it. We lost twenty thousand season ticket holders during that mess . I stayed but many did not .

 

[JHB4UK]

hehehe

 

[The-Hack]

Regarding the OP, has Arkansas saved our bacon??

ESPN reporting Cal to Arky??

WTF??

 

[The-Hack]

Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost

 

[Greezy Kreek]

Let’s just hope no Bill Clyde’s are available for Mitch to bring in.

 

[Grumpyolddawg]

Read in LHL this AM that at the moment, Mark Stoops buyout is $44M, got an extension two years ago right before the ill fated Vanderbilt fiasco. Barnhart was a little defensive about the long term contracts and hefty buyouts, not surprisingly.

I like Stoops and he has done a good job . . . but $44M??????

I wish I had been able to negotiate on behalf of clients with Barnhart, I would have retired long before did.

That's really not out of line for a successful SEC coach. Kirby's is almost 100m after his last extension. I mean ATM reportly made a run at CMS this off season and were prepared to pay the buyout if the fans hadn't pulled a UT. I bet they wish they had kept quiet with who they got. They paid 75m to hire a Jimbo assistant.

 

[Johnfarrel]

Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost

The Lord moves in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Going to be interesting to see how it impacts football nil the new mbb coach presumably rekindling relationships that will reroute nil monies.

 

[Deeeefense]

Going to be interesting to see how it impacts football nil the new mbb coach presumably rekindling relationships that will reroute nil monies.

Assuming NIL is a zero sum game. To the uber wealthy donners what they put up is just a tiny part of their net worth which could easily increase so hypothetically BB could go up without impacting football or both could even go up.

 

[The-Hack]

BB could go up without impacting football or both could even go up.

True, but as was the implication of my OP, had we paid Cal his buyout, or any significant fraction of it, or even lived in fear of doing so next year, it might have dampened enthusiasm for the current Football NIL fundraising.

This means of his departure is simply the best for all.

 

[Girthang]

I think we should offer 3M to an Arkansas booster to push the Hogs AD to go after Cal. Save us 30M if we invest the 3M this way. Win win

 

[The-Hack]

I think we should offer 3M to an Arkansas booster to push the Hogs AD to go after Cal. Save us 30M if we invest the 3M this way. Win win

Lol.

Truth might be stranger than fiction!!