Mitch Barnhart has an obligation to the program

[TankedCat]

I hate to start a thread with similar threads all having similar topics

but this needs to be said

Whether Mitch wanted Cal or not, whether Mitch had a hand in giving Cal the lifetime contract or not, he is still the Athletic Director for the University.

Not to dive into the hyperbole, but he is way past due on both addressing this publicly by stating that what has happened at Kentucky is not to UK standards and *HE* is taking steps to correct it
and secondly to actually do something to prevent this current slide in the program. We aren't Indiana by any stretch but the program invests heavily on winning, and if the program can't win the games it needs to win to be relevant in College Basketball, then as AD he has an obligation to the program to step in.

So far, IMO, he has hid in his office and refuses to address this, again, I'm guessing but I would say its because if he says the wrong thing, he just committed the university to a $33m buyout and there may be some heavy hitters including his boss , key donors and people on the BOT who will throw him out with the $33m, so the safe play is to say nothing and take the heat.

But that is his job - to address a poor performing sport , just like he did with women's basketball a few days ago.

At this point UK isn't keeping Calipari on merit, its keeping Calipari on due to their fiduciary responsibility as caretakers for the University. That isn't what is supposed to happen. Whoever structured that contract has to go. They guessed wrong, and if the AD is unwilling to step up and address it, he needs to go, especially if UK ends up paying it to Calipari or retains him for yet another failed season.

 

[AGEE11]

Mitch's obligation should be to apologize for the contract/buyout and resign

Posted in other threads and will for a while, but if I'm a booster and they want help on the buyout my comment is this: "I'll pay, but only if the idiot who gave him this buyout is fired too"

 

[jedwar]

Mitch needs to be held accountable for the ridulous contract. If he doesn't find the money for the buyout and make a good hire he needs to go too. Frankly I don't trust him to make the hire.

 

[TTTblue24]

How does cal never talk to him or have a working relationship with him?? That’s so strange and to listen to Matt’s post game show, he doesn’t have a good relationship even with the boosters……how do you do that with that job???

 

[UKfan215]

A change needs to be made. It was obvious with Kyra Elzy. It is just as obvious with John Calipari. Cal has absolutely no idea how to fix the problems here because he doesn't realize that HE IS THE PROBLEM! Nothing is going to change or improve as long as he remains. It is simply time to part ways. And it is Mitch's job to facilitate that change. If he is unwilling or incapable of making that change, then he needs to be relieved of his duties.

 

[bigbluedon]

Mitch's obligation should be to apologize for the contract/buyout and resign

Posted in other threads and will for a while, but if I'm a booster and they want help on the buyout my comment is this: "I'll pay, but only if the idiot who gave him this buyout is fired too"

I am with you but the president and the board approved it after Mitch did. Just buy the SOB out so we can move on and quit being the laughing stock of college ball.

 

[TankedCat]

Mitch's obligation should be to apologize for the contract/buyout and resign

Posted in other threads and will for a while, but if I'm a booster and they want help on the buyout my comment is this: "I'll pay, but only if the idiot who gave him this buyout is fired too"

the challenge is, if you want Calipari gone, are you going to give the man serious money, your own money - to leave?

I don't believe there is going to be a handful of daddy warbucks out there who love the University of Kentucky so much that they'll donate life changing money to a man who has already soaked the University for $100m

What I think will have to happen is UK is going to pressure Cal to accept a smaller buyout and walk away or they'll hamstring him for the rest of his time at UK.

And thanks to Vanderbilt, if what they say about Stackhouse on here is true, that buyout probably won't be less than $25m

 

[Jeff2Reed]

Mitch doesn’t know what to say yet. He’s being careful.

We’ve easily got the money for the buyout and there’s no way Calipari can remain as the head coach at Kentucky. If you go back, and I said this yesterday, Calipari was already aware this loss was a possibility and he was already aware he’s close to being fired. “Whats the worst that can happen”. And this isn’t a guy who was concerned, that’s the alarming part. but he absolutely knew this was probably coming.

The university makes a fortune off of basketball, but I think they really believe we’ll show up anyway, and that’s the problem. It’s time to stop showing up and let the program bleed out so it can be rebuilt.

now all of you who think the “good ole boys” we used to have were a problem and the new age foreigners are just wonderful; this is what happens when you don’t have Kentucky gatekeepers at the front making sure this program is taken care of. The issues with the NCAA didn't matter you dolts, the program was being built as one of the best. Now we’ve got guys that don’t care one bit about UK basketball in control. Nobody is there to protect the program at all.

And some of our own fans thought that was a good idea. What’s worse in Barnhart and some of the admins are becoming rich off of what those men did and are now burning it to the ground. It’s the most disgusting thing I’ve ever seen in sports.

 

[WizardWCN]

If Cal is not retired or fired by tuesday, Mitch needs to retire or be fired!

 

[FitchandMurray29]

I’d love to know if the buyout portion of the contract was important at the time. He had to know the 75% of remaining salary on a 10 year deal or whatever would screw him if things went sideways. Would Cal have really left for UCLA if the buyout was say 50% of remaining salary? I have a hard time seeing it. That alone is over 10M difference if we wanted to fire him today.

The length of the contract, the ambassador provision, the salary. Personally I don’t care about any of them. The buyout section is everything. You have to have flexibility in decision making in leadership. He lost a contract negotiation so badly he lost that flexibility.

 

[billCgmx]

It's like an endless loop, Mitch doesn't fear for his job so Cal doesn't fear for his either.

 

[Lazlo7]

They both need to be Boo'd whenever and wherever they show their faces in Kentucky unless they step down. UKs record in post season tournaments is unacceptable over the last 4 years and should not be tolerated by anyone who values the program.

 

[JumperJack]

MB has a context extension through 2028. This came even after it was clear that basketball is a sinking ship.

There doesn’t seem to be much accountability in many of our institutions.