It was not quite long ago that Texas A&M was the only school that was familiar to making huge buyouts to fire their football coaches. That spending fever has now gone viral in college football – and the most recent possible example could be in LSU.
One of the most rebellious and confident coaches in the sport, formerly, Brian Kelly, appeared before the reporters this week and did something that no one imagined, he apologized. Brian Kelly said, we intend to do our fan base better. I understand that there are individuals who believe that I am not doing the job presently.
It is a remarkable sight to a man who has been struggling against detractors over the years, particularly when he was making his winning bid at Notre Dame. The college football scene has evolved quickly. Being patient is over, and huge buyouts are in.
Just look at Penn State. When James Franklin had the Nittany Lions just a game short of the national championship, the school was left in shock after it fired him six games later. The deals saw Franklin leave with a jaw-dropping amount of a $50 million buyout and Florida rewarding Billy Napier with almost 21 million dollars to go.
The latter are no longer isolated instances. What once would be considered as big-money exceptions at both Texas A&M and Auburn are now the new norms – and every single coach is aware of it. It is probably the reason why Brian Kelly, who is generally a firebrand and unapologetic, has changed his tone as LSU is going through a challenging period. His Tigers were looking at a possible third defeat with an undefeated Texas A&M coming to Baton Rouge that could push the deep-pocketed LSU boosters to the limit.
In case the Tigers does choose to effect a change, they will be required to pay Brian Kelly out a round amount of 54 million to purchase the second-largest buyout in college football history. And the irony? In order to attract another star coach, LSU would most likely need to give the identical type of contract guarantee that they have just paid.
The cost of victory or defeat in the sport continues to increase. There was just a recent extension of Curt Cignetti by Indiana on the basis of fully guaranteed eight-year, 93 million contract. Ole Miss is also willing to offer Lane Kiffin a new huge contract to ensure that he does not go to other high-profile programs.
It is all a part of the game in the present day college football. Big wins bring unity. Big losses bring buyouts. And as Brian Kelly attempts to defuse the situation at LSU, it is crystal clear that in the new age, no coach is only a few bad Saturdays off of an extremely costly farewell.
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