COLOMBIA – Initial negotiations between the University of South Carolina and the dismissed football coach Will Muschamp over the purchase of his contract have been described by a USC source as “friendly”, but will take time.
Muschamp, fired last month after more than four seasons, owed more than $ 13 million, a figure announced in reports for most of the season. But a contract amendment that reduced his earnings so he could pay a technical assistant more money last year was never signed. This brings your total purchase to over $ 15 million, the amount due based on your original contract.
The contract was not signed because the assistant coach left to work for the NFL before Muschamp’s salary change took effect.
Gamecock leadership is working with Muschamp to receive a fixed payment below the total amount due, which would be paid over a four-year period.
USC trustees are expected to vote on a contract for new coach Shane Beamer on Tuesday.
The Oklahoma assistant coach, who was once Steve Spurrier’s assistant at USC, is expected to win a five-year contract for just under $ 3 million a year, which is at the lowest level of the coaches’ pay scale. SEC. Beamer, son of famed former Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer, is giving up a slightly higher payout to spend more money on assistant coaches.
Two Muschamp assistants, defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson and special team coordinator Kyle Krantz, were not hired. The rest were warned to hold on, as Beamer is still finishing his team, which he said may include some remnants.
Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo has another year of contract and $ 1.2 million. If he is not hired by 2021, it will add to the already heavy bill that the USC accumulated when Muschamp was fired.
Money remains a heavy topic for Gamecocks. USC is battling a projected revenue drop of $ 58 million as COVID-19 has reduced the number of games and fans.
Sports director Ray Tanner told reporters that USC can work on terms of acquisition with Muschamp “by mutual agreement”.
“It hasn’t been a situation where it involves the board leadership or the board chairman and (the chairman of USC Bob) Caslen,” Tanner said on Monday when Beamer was introduced. “But I started having some conversations … without these entities being involved, because I don’t think we have reached a point where I have anything to offer them. So, these conversations will take place, but on the other hand, you know what the contract is. “
Tanner, on Phil Kornblut’s radio show in Columbia on Thursday night, said the negotiations were continuing, and did not say when they would end. He is expected to speak to the council about Beamer’s contract and possible other matters on Tuesday.
A call for comments to Muschamp’s agent Jimmy Sexton was not returned.
Tanner has a target aimed directly at him because of Muschamp’s contract, despite Beamer’s highly praised hiring.
Tanner hired Muschamp in 2015 just over a year after Muschamp was fired from Florida, the day after the Gamecocks beat Florida. Muschamp received a contract extension and a significant increase after a nine-win season in 2017, which is not surprising considering the improvement of the three-win USC team he inherited.
But an extension after a regular 7-5 season in 2018 – introduced before the USC was crushed 28-0 in its bowl game – raised the buyout to a hefty amount.
Muschamp asked Tanner to sacrifice an annual $ 200,000 increase in his contract so that he could give more money to running back coach Thomas Brown last year and thus reduce the purchase to $ 13.2 million, but it was never signed even after approval by the board.
This unsigned contract was first reported by The State newspaper in Columbia. Tanner in his radio interview did not confirm or deny statements in the story.
Muschamp’s contract also does not include a clause found in many coaching contracts that would allow USC to subtract his salary from his next job during the four-year acquisition period.
When Muschamp was fired from Florida’s coaching post in 2014, he left with a multi-year purchase of $ 6.3 million, an untouched amount by the $ 1.6 million he earned in a year as Auburn’s defensive coordinator before be hired by the USC.
It has become the norm for football coaches, especially at the SEC, to receive massive checks to go out when wins do not occur often enough.
Former Arkansas coach Bret Bielema received $ 12 million when he was fired, and the school had to pay successor Chad Morris $ 10 million to leave after just 22 games.
Last season, Joe Moorhead received $ 7 million for not training in the state of Mississippi, while Ole Miss’ Matt Luke received $ 6.5 million, part of a total of $ 12 million for his team.
All pale before the purchase that the State of Florida gave Willie Taggart in the middle of its second season. Taggart got $ 18 million to leave, after FSU paid $ 4.3 million just to buy his previous contracts before coming to the Seminoles.
Follow David Cloninger on Twitter @DCPandC.