Proposed law seeks to limit skyrocketing salaries of college coaches

[mktmaker]

Proposed federal law seeks to limit skyrocketing salaries of college coaches

A proposed federal law is the latest -- and perhaps most powerful -- attempt seeking to limit spiraling salaries among college coaches. The possibility of an anti-trust exemption emerging from that law would allow schools to limit or cap those salaries with the creation of a national commission that would aim to reform college athletics.

Most of the national attention for the proposed bill has centered around increased oversight of sexual assault by the NCAA regarding athletes. However, the bill contains a provision that would examine "the amount of funds expended on coaching salaries …"

"I would say this would be discussed. That's really the only way we can stop [spiraling salaries]," Ohio University professor David Ridpath told CBS Sports. "As a public institution, you shouldn't be building a lazy river or paying a strength coach a million dollars."


https://www.cbssports.com/college-f...mit-skyrocketing-salaries-of-college-coaches/

 

[htbud11]

I think anyone should be able to pay anyone else whatever they are worth to them if it is their money. However, when taxpayer dollars are involved, I am all for limits.

 

[mark0202]

If that’s the case, politicians will start to cap everything all these pay scales.

 

[Spica Orbit]

I think anyone should be able to pay anyone else whatever they are worth to them if it is their money. However, when taxpayer dollars are involved, I am all for limits.

---
Let's start with senators & congress crazies first & see how that works.

Spica Orbit

 

[3632]

Frankly, I expected something like this to come sooner. Not necessarily limiting coaching salaries, but something that would cap expenditure in general.

 

[Blueaz]

If that’s the case, politicians will start to cap everything all these pay scales.

and in the private sector that is collusion and illegal...except for insurance companies

 

[ram1955]

The only schools worried about this are schools that don't have the funds or want to spend the funds on athletics. Let the market dictate salaries. There are few coaches that can lead a Football team to a nc. There are likely thousands of people that could be successful as congressman/woman or even potus.
IMO, we should cap politician income first.

 

[trueblujr2]

In general most of a coaches salary comes from outside sources, media requirements, endorsements deals, etc. those type deals are what’s allowing these salaries to escalate so high.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

This is stupidity on numerous different levels. Whomever sponsored this nonsense should be ashamed. But we know politicians have no shame.

First it's fundamentally stupid to cap what a willing employer is willing to pay a willing employee.

Second this is at best a state issue, since many coaches are employed by the state. None of them are employed by the federal government. So they have no real interest here.

Third the actual school paid portion of the salary is pretty meager in comparison to the total. All the major money is guaranteed through donations, endorsements, and other private funds.

Sad/scary to think such an idiot might have any say in any actually important issue facing our nation.

 

[CatGotMyTongue]

Stoops and Cal make the same base

 

[3632]

This is stupidity on numerous different levels. Whomever sponsored this nonsense should be ashamed. But we know politicians have no shame.

First it's fundamentally stupid to cap what a willing employer is willing to pay a willing employee.

Second this is at best a state issue, since many coaches are employed by the state. None of them are employed by the federal government. So they have no real interest here.

Third the actual school paid portion of the salary is pretty meager in comparison to the total. All the major money is guaranteed through donations, endorsements, and other private funds.

Sad/scary to think such an idiot might have any say in any actually important issue facing our nation.

Yeah I love the federal politicians out there talking about ‘the rich’ like it’s someone else and they aren’t in the top 2% of earners just by salary alone. Not even factoring in all their nonsense money they leverage out of everything

 

[TBCat]

Stupid law. It's nobody's business what a university wants to pay coaches except that university. If you succeed you only push the top coaches to the NFL and thus water down college play. Hopefully there isn't any really serious interest in this bill.

 

[Deli owl]

---
Let's start with senators & congress crazies first & see how that works.

Spica Orbit

They just steal it

 

[Mills_for_Three]

 

[rqarnold]

Stupid law. It's nobody's business what a university wants to pay coaches except that university. If you succeed you only push the top coaches to the NFL and thus water down college play. Hopefully there isn't any really serious interest in this bill.

When a university is taking tax dollars to fund its operations then tax payers should have a voice at the table.
Many top college coaches have gone to the NFL and failed. It’s a different job that requires a different skill set.

I doubt this legislation would affect private/outside income to coaches...simply how much that could be paid and guaranteed by the institution.

IMHO it is wrong and immoral for a school that may be struggling financially to owe a coach millions that should be used to fulfill the school’s mission to its students.

 

[K_TIME]

So many are tired of this politicians class warfare nonsense...if Saban can command $9M then so be it, his worth to Alabama is probably exponentially worth way more than his salary if Alabama revenue were to be looked at during the Dubose/Shula/Franchione era.

Also, it's funny politicians don't blink an eye at sending over hundreds of millions to other countries for foreign aid, awarding mega contracts to companies that have all kinds of potential kick backs, etc.. for individuals. Coaching is a business model so let it play out and the market will quit paying a salary when it's ready.

 

[YaketySax]

I'm for capping head coach pay at public institutions, but I also know they are just going to then pour that money into coordinator and assistant salaries. It's not going into academics.

Know what would really limit coaching salaries? Paying the players what they're worth in a non-fixed market.

 

[3632]

When a university is taking tax dollars to fund its operations then tax payers should have a voice at the table.
Many top college coaches have gone to the NFL and failed. It’s a different job that requires a different skill set.

I doubt this legislation would affect private/outside income to coaches...simply how much that could be paid and guaranteed by the institution.

IMHO it is wrong and immoral for a school that may be struggling financially to owe a coach millions that should be used to fulfill the school’s mission to its students.

I agree it’s wrong. The issue should be solved from the university and oversight standpoint. Reckless and irresponsible presidents and various other institution managers aren’t held accountable well enough for their institutional based decisions. Look at the ul situation. With Ramsey and Jurich in charge they overspent on athletics, overpaid and overprotected each other in their contracts, hooked up family members, took money from the university foundation with no oversight or accountability and the only real punishment was losing their jobs and in some cases actually getting additional money to go away so that the school could ‘move forward to a new day’. The governor removed the board and there certainly had been no adequate oversight. But not one person had any financial accountability or reckoning for the matter. and this went on for over a decade. How a board could let that happen and while the university itself struggles financially is beyond irresponsible. for all of his knuckleheadedness Bevin was the first governor to bother stepping in on all the nonsense over there. It’s the politicians and board members etc that sort of turn the blind eye for many reasons.

 

[Rembrandt90]

I'm for capping head coach pay at public institutions, but I also know they are just going to then pour that money into coordinator and assistant salaries. It's not going into academics.

Know what would really limit coaching salaries? Paying the players what they're worth in a non-fixed market.

You are making some assumptions that many, including myself, will not agree with. But, in any case, I doubt the courts or the legislatures in most states will ever cap salaries in a free market economy. California might, but the idea won’t get any traction most states.

 

[WildCard]

Athletic Department budgets are a bit peculiar relative to traditional school budgets. Coaching compensation has become ridiculous but a law capping same is DOA. I think many (most ?) situations are characterized by a "fairly reasonable" salary by the school and a HUGE add on from what I will generically call "non-school sources".

Peace

 

[YaketySax]

You are making some assumptions that many, including myself, will not agree with. But, in any case, I doubt the courts or the legislatures in most states will ever cap salaries in a free market economy. California might, but the idea won’t get any traction most states.

I don't care if you agree or not. I don't agree with many of your assumptions but I don't feel the need to respond to you regardless how mild or hot the take you emit.

 

[TBCat]

When a university is taking tax dollars to fund its operations then tax payers should have a voice at the table.
Many top college coaches have gone to the NFL and failed. It’s a different job that requires a different skill set.

I doubt this legislation would affect private/outside income to coaches...simply how much that could be paid and guaranteed by the institution.

IMHO it is wrong and immoral for a school that may be struggling financially to owe a coach millions that should be used to fulfill the school’s mission to its students.

That might be true to an extent when it comes to state governments but not federal. Even state governments shouldn't try to cap salaries. And there is absolutely no evidence that coaches salaries are costing tax payers anything. The Athletic departments return money to the school not siphon off it. If UK had to down grade education to cover Calipari's salary then I would be against paying him what we do. But even if that were the case that's a decision for the university and not politicians who are totally unfamiliar with the university's budget.

And I won't get into the fallacy of salary caps and how they don't even work since that we trigger a long drawn out discussion on free markets. And that would hijack this thread which I hate when that happens, so I won't do it.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

IMHO it is wrong and immoral for a school that may be struggling financially to owe a coach millions that should be used to fulfill the school’s mission to its students.

Is someone forcing them against their will? These are voluntary arrangements. And a fraction of the actual salary is even paid by the school itself.

Much Ado about nothing, per usual with worthless politics

 

[UKnCincy]

When a university is taking tax dollars to fund its operations then tax payers should have a voice at the table.
Many top college coaches have gone to the NFL and failed. It’s a different job that requires a different skill set.

I doubt this legislation would affect private/outside income to coaches...simply how much that could be paid and guaranteed by the institution.

IMHO it is wrong and immoral for a school that may be struggling financially to owe a coach millions that should be used to fulfill the school’s mission to its students.

For a financially strapped school to find itself in a situation where they owe millions to a coach, that means the following had to occur:

• School had an opening they wanted to fill
• School identified a coaching candidate to pursue
• School negotiated and agreed to those millions in order to get the candidate they wanted

First, there’s nothing immoral about those actions or that situation. In terms of being wrong, the school is the only one who did anything wrong because it is the school who choose to be fiscally irresponsible.

And if the problem is that schools are being fiscally irresponsible, then the solution is not to restrict the schools’ contracting partners’ ability to earn market value for their services.

All this bill would do is “harm” coaches and allow schools to shift their fiscal irresponsibility to other areas.

 

[Catfanlou]

and in the private sector that is collusion and illegal...except for insurance companies

I think Health insurance companies and workers should be limited to a million a year (Humana CEO makes 14 Million for instance) and /or should be taxed 90% on any earnings over one million. People should not make huge money off of health problems of other people.

In my very first job as a lawyer my firm did some collections .However my senior partner refused to take any collection cases on behalf of medical providers. He said' We're not spending our time chasing someone around who incurred medical debt to protect their child. If they bought a car or furniture they couldn't afford that's one thing but medical debt is different. "

 

[cat_in_the_hat]

I think Health insurance companies and workers should be limited to a million a year (Humana CEO makes 14 Million for instance) and /or should be taxed 90% on any earnings over one million. People should not make huge money off of health problems of other people.

In my very first job as a lawyer my firm did some collections .However my senior partner refused to take any collection cases on behalf of medical providers. He said' We're not spending our time chasing someone around who incurred medical debt to protect their child. If they bought a car or furniture they couldn't afford that's one thing but medical debt is different. "

I can't really agree with this. The market should determine what the value of someone's labor is. Not some third party. If Humana feels that he brings that kind of value to the company, then that is what they needed to pay to get him. I think some of this has gotten out of hand, but the market will correct it if it has. You or I don't need to be dictating what a company pays its employees.

I very much understand that medical debt is different in the sense that a person didn't choose the medical debt. It was a forced decision they had to make. I went through major surgery over the summer, and understand that very well. That being said, they still owe the money. It shouldn't be up to your senior partner to decide who should pay their debts and who shouldn't. In both cases, they owe the money and need to pay it if they can.

 

[laxcat#5]

This is a great idea. The salaries at the big universities have spiraled out of control and these costs are being indirectly passed on to the players, students, and tax payers.

 

[Shavers48]

If that’s the case, politicians will start to cap everything all these pay scales.

FB coaches better start upping their political contributions - fast

 

[Caveman Catfan]

This is a great idea. The salaries at the big universities have spiraled out of control and these costs are being indirectly passed on to the players, students, and tax payers.

I don’t think there is any part of a UK’s student’s college debt that can be identified as the salaries of the coaches.

I did not hit the link, but in the pasted portion of the article, an Ohio U rep is quoted. Now, if you are a G6 school, you probably want coaches’ salaries to be capped so that you can improve your chances of competing. I would suspect that is one motive.

Under what guise of power does the federal government have to cap a profession’s salary? Most coaches’ are not paid by the university, but by an independently created athletic foundation that does not receive federal funding. This is a slippery slope.

This is some scary stuff.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

This is a great idea. The salaries at the big universities have spiraled out of control and these costs are being indirectly passed on to the players, students, and tax payers.

You really just don't know what you are talking about. It's not necessarily your fault, because you are being intentionally misled into reaching this conclusion. However it would behoove everyone to actually research before you just swallow a line.

Coach Cal's contract is about 8 million per year. Of that, UK pays 400k with some additional incentives. The rest is secured through endorsements and donations.

Yes 400k. And that is funded by UK Athletics. Not even the general fund. How much revenue do you think Cal generates for UK?

Stoops contract is the same: 400k funded by Athletics. Rest private money. How's that investment going? Pretty great. Great enough that football and men's basketball fund every other sports at UK. Good enough that two years ago, gross revenue was 124,000,000; and nearly all of it comes from those two sports.

Pretty good for an 800k combined total investment in coaching salaries.

In comparison, I saw there was an ADDITIONAL 2,000,000 allocated for hires in the diversity department; whatever that is. How much return on investment you think that gets?

1) this is a made up problem by moron politicians

2) willing parties should always be able to enter into voluntary contracts. Even ones that may end up as bad decisions.

3) coaching hires are great investments. Other bloated administration/charlatan nonsense is not.

 

[Caveman Catfan]

You really just don't know what you are talking about. It's not necessarily your fault, because you are being intentionally misled into reaching this conclusion. However it would behoove everyone to actually research before you just swallow a line.

Coach Cal's contract is about 8 million per year. Of that, UK pays 400k with some additional incentives. The rest is secured through endorsements and donations.

Yes 400k. And that is funded by UK Athletics. Not even the general fund. How much revenue do you think Cal generates for UK?

Stoops contract is the same: 400k funded by Athletics. Rest private money. How's that investment going? Pretty great. Great enough that football and men's basketball fund every other sports at UK. Good enough that two years ago, gross revenue was 124,000,000; and nearly all of it comes from those two sports.

Pretty good for an 800k combined total investment in coaching salaries.

In comparison, I saw there was an ADDITIONAL 2,000,000 allocated for hires in the diversity department; whatever that is. How much return on investment you think that gets?

1) this is a made up problem by moron politicians

2) willing parties should always be able to enter into voluntary contracts. Even ones that may end up as bad decisions.

3) coaching hires are great investments. Other bloated administration/charlatan nonsense is not.

Good post. Thanks.

I will add, as we all should know, that the revenue generated by mainly two sports does great things for the university, not just in the form of marketing. Every scholly athlete is an out-of-State tuition to the school. And, every year there is a financial gift to the school from athletics. It funds other things. Smart people look at the economics of coaches’ salaries and analyze the ledger to see the benefit. Politicians don’t need to be involved.

This is the idea that government needs to save us from ourselves. Tell your congressperson to cut it out.

 

[bluejohnson]

Will never pass


It’s called capitalism

 

[SECCountry75]

After reading this thread, I think there are some aspects to this that lots of people may not realize. A typical P5 head coach’s income is derived from multiple sources. Coaches get money from the school, their TV or radio contract, corporate sponsorships, and sometimes a private athletics foundation. You can’t cap all of that. Radio stations and corporate sponsors can pay the coach whatever they want to pay him. If you cap what the school can pay him directly, the top schools would be at even more of an advantage because they could generously sweaten the pot with incomes from all these other sources. Capping coaches’ incomes is a liberal pipe dream.

 

[Poetax]

Good post. Thanks.

I will add, as we all should know, that the revenue generated by mainly two sports does great things for the university, not just in the form of marketing. Every scholly athlete is an out-of-State tuition to the school. And, every year there is a financial gift to the school from athletics. It funds other things. Smart people look at the economics of coaches’ salaries and analyze the ledger to see the benefit. Politicians don’t need to be involved.

This is the idea that government needs to save us from ourselves. Tell your congressperson to cut it out.

While they are voting on that, let them vote that when politicians get elected they shouldn't get a pension for life. Let them be on Social Security like the rest of us.

 

[Freetaxreturn]

I hope any coach gets paid as much as they can, just like everyone on here except hack he makes too much really

 

[wildcatsboston1984]

The only schools worried about this are schools that don't have the funds or want to spend the funds on athletics. Let the market dictate salaries. There are few coaches that can lead a Football team to a nc. There are likely thousands of people that could be successful as congressman/woman or even potus.
IMO, we should cap politician income first.

Thousands that could be successful as POTUS? You must not think much of the role then.

 

[ram1955]

Thousands that could be successful as POTUS? You must not think much of the role then.

To his credit, Trump proved that it certainly does not take a politician. Yes, while it's a very small percentage of our 300M or so citizens, I believe there are many, many people in our country with the intelligence to do the job. Many wouldn't take it because of the low salary and the lack of total power.

 

[3632]

While they are voting on that, let them vote that when politicians get elected they shouldn't get a pension for life. Let them be on Social Security like the rest of us.

They also don't have to deal with the same health care they've put the public into.

 

[Rembrandt90]

I don't care if you agree or not. I don't agree with many of your assumptions but I don't feel the need to respond to you regardless how mild or hot the take you emit.

Wow. I guess I hit a nerve. My comment obviously wasn’t personal.

At the end of the day, no court or legislature, perhaps outside of CA, NY, or IL, is going to try to cap anyone’s salary. This isn’t Venezuela.

 

[Levibooty]

People just ignore elected officials and their hired staffs are already working under salary caps, coaches like teachers should be no different. I have no problem with the free market excesses and the morons who P their money away, but tax dollars are another animal altogether, that is not and should not be govern by free markets. I think this state needs better educators and schools than it does more high paid coaches. While we are competing well on a national level in sports, the value of UK in overall academic performance is 193rd. That is the ranking that needs vast improvement for Kentucky taxpayers and the future of this state. I love UK sports but we desperately need forward looking leadership and vast improvement in areas that are not entertainment based.