Pioneer Press: New Gophers coach’s lavish salary catches one regent by surprise

[BleedGopher]

per Chad:

Hsu said regents never discussed how much they were willing to pay for the position. He expects they’ll vote on the hire at their next meeting, but that will be a month after Fleck’s Friday introduction. The regents have sought approval power on contracts of more than $650,000, Johnson said, but that has yet to become a provision.

“Ideally, we would have had a plan in place for how we were going to pay for this coaching transition,” Hsu said. “I’m not necessarily happy with the process that we took on this.”

If the athletics department can afford the contract, as well as roughly $5 million in buyouts for Claeys and his staff, that’s fine, Hsu said. But the sports programs routinely fall millions of dollars short of breaking even, requiring taxpayer subsidies.

“It’s a lot of money,” Hsu said. “You know, if he delivers results, it’ll be a bargain. But we’ve got a lot of seats to fill in order to make up for the additional expense.”

http://www.twincities.com/2017/01/0...football-but-a-regent-says-it-was-unexpected/

Go Gophers!!

 

[maroonfive]

Who are these people? They don't have a clue about college athletics and the Big Ten.

Ski-U-Mah !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Some guy]

Well assuming that regent hadn't already budgeted the extra 18 million dollar media deal compared to 3 years ago that covers it right there.


Hsu needs to go. He clearly doesn't know how the world works. Will be calling my congresspeople to tell them I will never vote for them again if they ever support Hsu via vote.

Not only does he not know how big time colleges function, he outs his own lack of knowledge in the media.

 

[Some guy]

His term doesn't expire until 2021
So someone bump this in 2020 to remind me to call my congresspeople

 

[Goldmember]

Lavish?
Isn't the salary about average for a B1G HC?
So the headline should maybe read "average salary" rather than "lavish salary".

 

[AtlGaGopher]

Well assuming that regent hadn't already budgeted the extra 18 million dollar media deal compared to 3 years ago that covers it right there.


Hsu needs to go. He clearly doesn't know how the world works. Will be calling my congresspeople to tell them I will never vote for them again if they ever support Hsu via vote.

Not only does he not know how big time colleges function, he outs his own lack of knowledge in the media.

I'm sure he's scared of you...you seem to have so much power since you clearly understand how "big time colleges function"

 

[bigticket1]

Well assuming that regent hadn't already budgeted the extra 18 million dollar media deal compared to 3 years ago that covers it right there.


Hsu needs to go. He clearly doesn't know how the world works. Will be calling my congresspeople to tell them I will never vote for them again if they ever support Hsu via vote.

Not only does he not know how big time colleges function, he outs his own lack of knowledge in the media.

Isn't he one of the regents who stayed up all night meeting with the players talking them off the cliff and helping end the boycott ? If so, he showed more leadership abilities in a tough situation than either our AD or esteemed President did. Put out a fire rather than pouring more fuel on it.

 

[BarnBurner]

Do Coyle and kaler know how to communicate?????

Good grief the leadership and management are severely lacking at the top.

 

[Spoofin]

Do Coyle and kaler know how to communicate?????

Good grief the leadership and management are severely lacking at the top.

Exactly the take away I had. Those 2 are so unimpressive.


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[watertown 1987 guy n]

Based on just his comments above, the regent seems like a pretty level headed guy. However, the one comment I have issue w is the regents having approval power for contracts over $650k. Does that mean veto power as well? I would be ok w them having voting power of the individual hired w salary over $650, but these people are not qualified to decide what that salary should be! That is for the market to decide and the AD should be on the line for showing we get the value from it.

 

[goldengophers]

As the founder of TeeMaster.com Hsu is always looking for a better discount.

 

[50PoundHead]

I've about had it with the Regents whatever their stance on any particular issue. I get that Dean Johnson is the Chair and there isn't a microphone in existence that he cannot find, but as Chair, it's appropriate that he's the mouthpiece for the board. But the rest of these folks spouting off in the press is getting a little embarrassing. I'm old and one of the big problems I have always seen about the U is that the Legislature and the Board of Regents seem to relish any opportunity to micromanage the place.

 

[Torres9]

Do Coyle and kaler know how to communicate?????

Good grief the leadership and management are severely lacking at the top.

I hear you but I for one appreciate this type of decisiveness. It's what our Ath Dept needs.

Imagine the conversation with this dude? "Oh, I don't know, isn't there a Tight Ends coach somewhere that we could hire for half the cost?" "Shouldn't we use a search firm?" "Should something like this take 4 months, we need a dozen opinions from people that don't care about athletics"

 

[go4rob]

Yes, instead let's hire a "bargain basement" kind of coach, and see what he can do. Guess why we haven't been to the Rose Bowl since 1962! *duh*

 

[BarnBurner]

I hear you but I for one appreciate this type of decisiveness. It's what our Ath Dept needs.

Imagine the conversation with this dude? "Oh, I don't know, isn't there a Tight Ends coach somewhere that we could hire for half the cost?" "Shouldn't we use a search firm?" "Should something like this take 4 months, we need a dozen opinions from people that don't care about athletics"

All part of effective leadership. Of which there is very very little.

 

[GopherinFlorida]

I get Hsu's concerns. It isn't like we have had a string of big buyouts from coaches we have fired over the last 15 years or that the athletic department has had to come to the U almost every year in the last 15 to cover expenses or anything. I am not advocating for micro management by the Regents but then I am no writing checks to cover the mistakes made by the athletic department.

 

[gopherfannnn]

The Fleck hire shows that the current president and the athletic director "get" how important revenue sports are to the University's growth. The salary and terms are consistent with the level of expectations for the program. Most fans understand that. Some do not. The strange statements from certain regents make it apparent that the extensive track history of failure in this area is due to their lack of vision, which boils down to a lack of interest and enthusiasm for sports in general.

Maybe it shouldn't be this way, but if the football program takes off it's extremely likely the rest of University, including academic programs, will benefit from the favorable attention. And it will be worth way, way more than $3-4 million per year.

 

[MaxyJR1]

Again ask the question of the President and AD before opening you mouth in the media. Politicians always going to politician.


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[Atl Gopher]

How could it catch Hsu by surprise? The salary is about average for a Big Ten coach. I don't understand how he could be surprised by the price tag unless he is totally out of touch with what is going on in men's college sports today. If that is the case then why is he on the board?

In his defense he does state that if it works it will be a bargain. I do want to give Hsu the benefit of the doubt. In my own company I don't make any major investment without running "what if" scenarios. What will the impact be financially if we make the investment and conversely what will the impact be if we do not. If this was not done by Kaler, then I can understand Hsu's concerns.