Leach out at tech.

[Crimson Kid]

I've been hearing this a few places, but havn't found anything on it yet. anyone else hearing this?

Their stupid imo if they do fire him.

[Mjcpr]

A caller mentioned this to Al earlier and he said no way.

So, it might be true. :D

[SoonerStormchaser]

Tech might be the stupidest bunch of moFo' EVAR if this is true...

[Harry Beanbag]

Why on earth would they fire him? Did I miss something?

[Mjcpr]

I think the deal is that today is when the deadline ends for him to sign their contract extension before it's pulled. I guess he didn't think it was good enough and isn't going to sign it. If this is his last contract year, I guess he'd be a "free agent" after this season.

[oudivesherpa]

I think he's signed thru 2010. Leach is kinda of Odd and Tech is a kinda odd place--a marriage made in heaven.

[TheUnnamedSooner]

Word on the street is that the money is not the problem for leach. The contract had some "wording" in it that leach's agent didn't like.

[SoCal]

The sides have essentially agreed on the financial terms of a new five-year deal that would average $2.54 million annually, but negotiations hung up on several clauses.

The provision that sticks in Leach's craw the most is one that would trigger his firing and a $1.5 million penalty if he interviews for another job without athletic director Gerald Myers' permission. Leach's current deal has no such restriction.

[Sooner_75]

Gerald Myers is the worst AD in the Big 12 and he would be in the running for worst in the nation.

[TUSooner]

This thread DEMANDED a question mark in the title.

[JLEW1818]

I've heard that he turned down a 5 year contract offer.

[SoonerStormchaser]

Considering their bull**** addition of a "We'll fire you and you owe us 1.5 million if you DARE talk to anyone else without our permission" clause, I'd turn it down too.

Thank you BC for starting this bull**** trend...may the STD's of a thousand Beantown residents plague the moron who came up with that idea!

[8timechamps]

Another bone-head clause in the contract was that Tech wanted complete rights to ancillary activities Leach took part in. Meaning that if Leach wrote a book, or signed a deal to do Sizzler commercials, Tech would get all the proceeds. Something almost unheard of.

Leach has been at Tech longer than the president and AD. You'd think they'd bend over to give him anything he wants.

[oumartin]

he won't sign new contract

[badger]

Tech is in no bargaining position. Tech wasn't on the football map (and won't be in the future) unless Leach is head pirate. Tech will not be in the BCS discussion, will not have ESPN College Gameday, will not have a 60 Minutes segment, will not be bowl regulars, will not be able to recruit top QB's or Michael Crabtree clones, will not have Donald Trump introduce their players, will not have the opportunity to have Bobby Knight pick them to beat Texas... nor will anyone else pick them to beat Texas ever again...

...yadda yadda yadda. Mikey deserves better than this shizzle. Cut ties with the sand pirates and choose any other school that would qualify as pirate-like. Maybe something coastal?

[texas bandman]

Here in Lubbock it's a big controversy. The Board of Regents is having a meeting on Friday to discuss Leach. They must be the dumbest buch of MF's I've ever seen. They should be kissing Coach Leach's @ss rather than giving him grief.

A current newscast from Lubbock can be seen at
http://everythinglubbock.com/content/redraidernation

It's the top story on Red Raider Nation.

If Leach were to go, it would be good for the Sooners, but I'd miss the wide open brand of football that Leach brings to Lubbock.

Stupid Sand Aggies!

[bluedogok]

If Myers pushes the board for Leach's dismissal, does Myers get dismissed instead?

He brought in the Knights which has done about as well as a turd in a punch bowl (or a Baby Ruth in a country club swimming pool) with Pat Knight probably getting canned after the season. Seems like he hasn't done the school many favors.

[Charla]

Who does Tech. think they are, OU ?

[8timechamps]

If Leach were to go, it would be good for the Sooners...

I don't know if that's true. Sure, we'd have a weaker team on the schedule, but I like having another top 25 team in the south. Helps our SOS and makes it possible that another team can beat Texas.

If they lose Leach and turn into another Colorado, it'll suck!

[goingoneight]

You know, Mike... that Kevin Wilson guy might be up for a head coaching position soon. ;)

[Bruiser53]

Other terms that Leach is unhappy with according to this (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3903503) article.

That if he is fired, his contract is only guaranteed for 12 percent. Texas coach Mack Brown, Oklahoma's Bob Stoops, Kansas State's Bill Snyder and Kansas' Mark Mangino are all guaranteed for 100 percent, while the league average is 55 percent. Leach's current contract puts his guaranteed portion at 40 percent.

• Leach's current buyout, which is $500,000, would increase to $1.5 million (Brown, Stoops, Snyder and Mangino do not have buyouts.)

• Leach would have to receive permission from Texas Tech to speak with another school or risk owing Tech $1.5 million.

• All of the money from his personal speaking properties, whether he makes an appearance or authors a book on his life in Wyoming, would go to Tech.


I don't blame Leach for not taking these things. From what I've heard, the AD at Tech thinks that no one else wants Leach because of his quirky personality and gimmiky offense, so he has been treating him like poop for awhile now. He might have a point seeing he didn't really get much interest from Washington and Auburn, but I think both parties are worse off if Leach is fired. I guess the bright side of him being fired is Sand Aggie returns to their God given place in the college football universe.

[SOONER STEAKER]

Wow, that's the only word that comes to mind when I think how stupid the AD must be to strongarm a man with a law degree.

Keep up the FIGHT Mike, FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT

[yermom]

they were inches from a BCS game, and #2 at one point this season

that AD is on crack

[AlbqSooner]

Tech is playing conventional contract games with a guy who has shown his lack of concern for conventional thinking. They apparently don't appreciate his willingness to walk away from things that don't appeal to him.

[Sooner70]

Tech is playing contract games with a degreed lawyer, and they should know better. Leach ain't no dummy. The Houston Chronicle reported that one of the clauses that bugs him the most is the one about him not being able to interview for any other jobs without informing the TT AD. May be other stuff. Is the Pirate Show wearing thin with the Lubbock Power's that Be ? Probably not.....just a little testing period on both sides. They'll probably come to agreement, but with Leach, it's gonna be different than negotiating with your average coach.....remember, he's got a Law degree. Contract language isn't foreign to him & surely he will tinker.

[Sooner70]

Wups....I didn't get that quite right. A clause that bugs him is that he has to get PERMISSION from the TT AD to talk to anybody else about another job. The Pirate ain't gonna go for that, likely, mate.

[JLEW1818]

Leach did good things for Oklahoma, and I'll always respect a guy who Bob thinks so highly of.

But if he gets the boot from tech, I'll still be able to sleep good at night....:D

[CincySooner]

I read that article and just shook my head. How stupid can Tech be? You don't yank around the guy that put you in the position you are now. Tech was ready to turn the corner in the next couple of years and be a perinneial threat to win the South. If they don't kiss his butt and beg him to stay they'll be looking at competing for third place again with Aggie and Aggy.

Tech invoked the right of parlay with the wrong pirate. Leach ought to be able to name his terms.

[JLEW1818]

I think Tech will lose 3+ games this year, in the regular season.

[OUDoc]

Tech is ****ed without Leach.
****ed.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Tech is looking incredibly stupid here.

Tech without Leach will make the the Spike Dykes years look like Bud, Barry and Bob all rolled into one...

Maybe Tech thinks they can get Tubberville???

[badger]

The Big 12 before Leach at Oklahoma.

Big 12 South: Texas A&M
Big 12 North: Nebraska

Big 12 with Leach at Oklahoma:
Big 12 South: Oklahoma
Big 12 North: Kansas State

Big 12 with Leach at Texas Tech:
- Texas A&M in the crapper
- Texas and OU take Tech seriously
- OSU might actually have a real rival in Tech? With a neutral location for uber dollars?
- Recruits choose Tech over traditional Big 12 powers
- Baylor is still Baylor

However, this is probably how the a$$hole AD sees it:

National, conference and divisional titles before Leach: 0
National, conference and divisional titles after Leach: 0

AD: Durrr, if we ain't winnin' none of dem dare titles with or without this guy, why not just hire me cuzz-inn to coach our fooseball team, durr?

If the Red Raider Nation knows whats good for them, they'll all line up to give this AD a swift kick in the Houston Nutt before they turn into Arkansas.

[Boomer_Sooner_sax]

The Big 12 before Leach at Oklahoma.

Big 12 South: Texas A&M
Big 12 North: Nebraska

Big 12 with Leach at Oklahoma:
Big 12 South: Oklahoma
Big 12 North: Kansas State

Big 12 with Leach at Texas Tech:
- Texas A&M in the crapper
- Texas and OU take Tech seriously
- OSU might actually have a real rival in Tech? With a neutral location for uber dollars?
- Recruits choose Tech over traditional Big 12 powers
- Baylor is still Baylor

However, this is probably how the a$$hole AD sees it:

National, conference and divisional titles before Leach: 0
National, conference and divisional titles after Leach: 0

AD: Durrr, if we ain't winnin' none of dem dare titles with or without this guy, why not just hire me cuzz-inn to coach our fooseball team, durr?

If the Red Raider Nation knows whats good for them, they'll all line up to give this AD a swift kick in the Houston Nutt before they turn into Arkansas.

Actually, Leach was only at OU for one year, 1999. We didn't win the confernce, or even the division that year, but we had a hell of a lot better year than we had before.

[badger]

Actually, Leach was only at OU for one year, 1999. We didn't win the confernce, or even the division that year, but we had a hell of a lot better year than we had before.

good point, but I put those two at the top because it was more of an era thing than a "that year" thing. I think Leach helped make OU's offense what it was in subsequent years... thus the tribute to KSU and OU for the Leach/OU thing.

However, my opinion of the AD's mindset is unchanged. He is likely thinking solely about trophies that Leach has won and sadly, there haven't been as many as he deserves because he has to compete with OU for them... the fact that he's beaten us twice is a testament to how well Tech is doing. Tech was once the No. 3 team in the Big 12 South... but that was before OU and Texas became regular powerhouses again.

They really should credit Tech with the Big 12 South for this year (I got my info from Wiki) if the Big 12 hasn't already. I mean, Mack Brown thinks he won it, right? :D

[Boomer_Sooner_sax]

Tech seems to be the thorn in the side to either OU or Texas every year, that should say something about what he has done in Lubbock. I am a big fan of Tech and love Lubbock, but let's put it this way, I am in the minority of people who love that city. It takes someone special to recruit players out there and I firmly believe that person in Leach. Sadly, I think it is about to be over though!

[rainiersooner]

Wow, what idiocy on the part of Tech. Interesting SI article: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/andy_staples/02/18/leach/index.html

[Collier11]

Leach has brought TT places they have never been before and will never be again, Meyers is an idiot

[NormanPride]

It will be interesting to see how they do this year without Leach. They were going to need a lot of help from coaching after losing their most prolific passer and receiver, and now they don't have that anymore. I predict that without Leach, Tech will be 4th best in the Big 12 south. And if A&M gets better, they may be last.

[Leroy Lizard]

College football coaches are sooooo overpaid.

[TXBOOMER]

they were inches from a BCS game, and #2 at one point this season

that AD is on crack

With extra ammonia!

[AlbqSooner]

College football coaches are sooooo overpaid.

When one considers the revenue generated by a winning program I have to disagree.

[ashley]

Considering revenue, I think they are underpaid.

[sooner ngintunr]

I'd rather see him in the SEC or PAC 10. UT would be great.

[Collier11]

College football coaches are sooooo overpaid.

explain...I dont agree with you at all so I would like to see your reasons then I will tell you why you are wrong :)

[JLEW1818]

Lizard boy leave!!!!

[Mobits]

Check out 39-33.com (http://www.39-33.com/) lol

[Leroy Lizard]

explain...I dont agree with you at all so I would like to see your reasons then I will tell you why you are wrong

For the money they bring in, they are nowhere near worth what they are paid. This is true for almost all coaches, not just any coach in particular.

Coaches are paid so much because the public has such an emotional attachment to winning. It isn't because of economics but rather emotional extortion. If Tech was a real business, Leach wouldn't be making anything close to what he is now. How much did Tech's football team bring in last year in total revenue? Maybe $20 million? How much profit? $5 million? Pfffffffft.

To give some perspective, the CEO of CostCo makes about the same as Mack Brown. Yet Costco brings in over 10 times as much revenue as UT football.

In fact, Costco's PROFITS are four times that of UT's GROSS RECEIPTS.

So yeah, coaches are overpaid. No head of any organization that only brings in $50 million should be paid millions of dollars per year. That's insane.

[OU_Sooners75]

College football coaches are sooooo overpaid.


No they are not. They are amongst the best teachers in a given field in the world.

Sure, some HS coaches are great teachers as well.
In the NFL, a head coach is not really a teacher, since those players are the creme de le creme when it comes to the sport of Football. There is not much teaching in the NFL ranks.

IN college, there is a whole lot of teaching, moreso than in high school. These guys that are great at what they do deserve every freaking penny they make.

Or can you explain the difference between where OU was with John Blake and Bob Stoops?

Can you explain the difference between Texas Tech was with Spike Dykes and Mike Leach?

Can you explain the difference where Texas was between Brown and Mackovic (sp?)?

Great coaches are worth their pay because not everyone is a great coach!

[AllAboutThe'O']

I'd rather see him in the SEC or PAC 10. UT would be great.

Too bad the job market closed up earlier with Washington, Tennessee, BC and Clemson having filled their positions.

I was talking to my college football buddy this evening and speculated on where Leach might wind up. I don't see a bunch of coaching changes after this upcoming season. I think the SEC's pretty much set, unless Urban Meyer does decide to go to Notre Dame if Weis gets the boot, but I still can't see Meyer leaving the Florida goldmine. The only possible SEC coaching change may be at South Carolina; Spurrier might decide to call it quits if he can't get the Gamecocks over the hump in the rugged SEC East. As far as the Pac-10, me and my buddy agreed that Arizona State would be an ideal place for Leach to land if Dennis Erickson starts getting that annual itch to take another job elsewhere. We also agreed there's no way Leach would take a job in a league like the Big 10.

[boomermagic]

For the money they bring in, they are nowhere near worth what they are paid. This is true for almost all coaches, not just any coach in particular.

Coaches are paid so much because the public has such an emotional attachment to winning. It isn't because of economics but rather emotional extortion. If Tech was a real business, Leach wouldn't be making anything close to what he is now. How much did Tech's football team bring in last year in total revenue? Maybe $20 million? How much profit? $5 million? Pfffffffft.

To give some perspective, the CEO of CostCo makes about the same as Mack Brown. Yet Costco brings in over 10 times as much revenue as UT football.

In fact, Costco's PROFITS are four times that of UT's GROSS RECEIPTS.

So yeah, coaches are overpaid. No head of any organization that only brings in $50 million should be paid millions of dollars per year. That's insane.


I have to agree but so are nfl players MLB players it doesn't stop with college coaches at all but I do agree with you..

[Collier11]

For the money they bring in, they are nowhere near worth what they are paid. This is true for almost all coaches, not just any coach in particular.

Coaches are paid so much because the public has such an emotional attachment to winning. It isn't because of economics but rather emotional extortion. If Tech was a real business, Leach wouldn't be making anything close to what he is now. How much did Tech's football team bring in last year in total revenue? Maybe $20 million? How much profit? $5 million? Pfffffffft.

To give some perspective, the CEO of CostCo makes about the same as Mack Brown. Yet Costco brings in over 10 times as much revenue as UT football.

In fact, Costco's PROFITS are four times that of UT's GROSS RECEIPTS.

So yeah, coaches are overpaid. No head of any organization that only brings in $50 million should be paid millions of dollars per year. That's insane.

I could go into about 20 different reasons why you are wrong but I will just give you the two easiest

1) Bob Stoops for example is given full responsibility of over 100 18-22 yr olds every year, it is on him to make sure they go to class, stay out of trouble, graduate, become good people, learn responsibility, win football games, stay healthy, etc...

2) Our athletic dept was something crazy like $34 million in debt when Stoops took over(correct me on exact numbers if im wrong) and now they are nearly even. Thats not the football program, thats the entire athletic department. While I will agree that some coaches are not worth so much, It could be argued that Stoops is worth more than the $3 million he is making.

[TMcGee86]

And, look at the Management structure of a place like Cosco.

You take it down to the store level and you are look at probably at least 10 times more positions than UT football.

So if you take the total salary of all those positions, and the total for UT football, I would imagine it wouldn't seem so out of wack.

[A-M]

I could go into about 20 different reasons why you are wrong but I will just give you the two easiest

1) Bob Stoops for example is given full responsibility of over 100 18-22 yr olds every year, it is on him to make sure they go to class, stay out of trouble, graduate, become good people, learn responsibility, win football games, stay healthy, etc...

2) Our athletic dept was something crazy like $34 million in debt when Stoops took over(correct me on exact numbers if im wrong) and now they are nearly even. Thats not the football program, thats the entire athletic department. While I will agree that some coaches are not worth so much, It could be argued that Stoops is worth more than the $3 million he is making.

I think you will find out that Stoops made just over or around $6 million last year. If he had won the MNC, it would have been $6.5 million.

[Collier11]

that was just cus of the 'stay bonus', he makes around 3 mil annually on a normal basis

[badger]

The market sets the salary, not what they're worth or what revenues are or whatever.

How much is a teacher worth? Well, you might use your logic to say that influence on young lives is worth six figures, minimum. However, state coffers and the number of teaching positions out there dictate that teachers make 30-40k.

How much is a cashier worth? Well, you logic might dictate that as the person that first greets customers when they enter and is the last person they see before leaving, not to mention handles all of the revenue from customers, they would be worth a lot! However, the number of cashiers coupled with the education level of cashiers, as well as a little corporate greed means cashiers are worth $6-$7 per hour.

So, are big-conference coaches overpaid? Only if they all are... and if they all are, nobody is.

[Rock Hard Corn Frog]

Leach is pretty saavy. I caught part of an interview last night when someone asked him if he would be fired. He pointed out that he still has a 2-year deal in place. He said it would be really strange that someone would turn down a new deal and opt to keep the one in place an be fired for it.

Not saying it wouldn't happen but it sure sounds like he is gonna get paid one way or another. He holds the cards. Also like others have said in 2 years Tech is back to also-ran status if he goes.

[badger]

Tech can get another Graham without any problems. They find a new top-passer-in-the-country QB every year... hell, even I could throw 5,000 yards as the starting quarterback at Tech!

...no, not really, but then again, I would never be the starting QB at Tech :D

The key with be to find another Crabtree, and it isn't going to happen. Thus, Tech will go back to upsetting top teams at the worst moment and always stay in the hunt for the divisional title until an untimely loss or two crushes all west Texas' sandy hopes once again.

But, even if Tech never usurps the top teams again, they already rushed the field three times for Texas. Thus, that should hold them over until Mikey inevitably bolts. After all, Mikey can clearly see that they are out to screw him over and he won't stay just to keep playing Sand Pirate.

[BermudaSooner]

For the money they bring in, they are nowhere near worth what they are paid. This is true for almost all coaches, not just any coach in particular.

So therefore you are saying that almost all coaches are being paid a non-market rate. This actually makes no sense, as the market rate for coaches is derived from the coaching market.

"Overpaid" implies that it is above a market rate. You therefore can't have everyone (or almost everyone) in a market above market.


Coaches are paid so much because the public has such an emotional attachment to winning. It isn't because of economics but rather emotional extortion. If Tech was a real business, Leach wouldn't be making anything close to what he is now. How much did Tech's football team bring in last year in total revenue? Maybe $20 million? How much profit? $5 million? Pfffffffft.

Yes, fans have an emotional attachment to winning, and it can be directly correlated to what they willing to pay for a ticket, for example. Those "emotions" can be converted to prices on a supply demand curve. You haven't proven how a coach is "overpaid."


To give some perspective, the CEO of CostCo makes about the same as Mack Brown. Yet Costco brings in over 10 times as much revenue as UT football.

In fact, Costco's PROFITS are four times that of UT's GROSS RECEIPTS.

First of all revenue is a ridiculous measure. The market governs what a coach and a CEO are worth.

Several years ago, Ben and Jerry of Ben and Jerry's ice cream had a thought. They believed their CEO was "overpaid" and that the CEO should not make more than 10 times the lowest paid employee. So they hired a CEO and paid him $225,000 a year. Long story short, you pay peanuts, you get monkeys. Ben and Jerry's almost went bankrupt in an astounding 9 months. The CEO was fired, a new one hired with a 7 figure salary and Ben and Jerry's returned to profit.

Same thing here. It would be an interesting experiment to get rid of Leach and hire what you would call a "fairly paid" coach. How much would that be, $750,000? $500,000? Anybody have a guess on how many wins Tech would have in 2010, or 2011 with that coach?


So yeah, coaches are overpaid. No head of any organization that only brings in $50 million should be paid millions of dollars per year. That's insane.

You likely miss things like merchandise sales, increased enrollment, ect, but in any event, your logic is just flawed. A better way to look at it would be, how much revenue would a coach that you considered "fairly paid" bring in? If you truly have a sport where the butts are in the seats no matter how many wins or losses, then it makes sense to hire the cheapest coach you can find. If; however, revenue (or profit) is determined by success, you have a much more difficult decision to make. Do I get the $500,000 coach, the $2 million coach, or the $3 million coach and what is my resulting revenue/profit with each.

[sooner59]

Word out of Lubbock is that Leach and Tech have reached an agreement for him to stay. I guess Tech buckled under the media scrutiny. They were being @55holes anyway.

[Leroy Lizard]

No they are not. They are amongst the best teachers in a given field in the world.

Sure, some HS coaches are great teachers as well.

Actually, high school coaching is harder since the talent you draw from is much rougher.

Those kids that Stoops recruits are already good football players and learned almost everything they know from their high school coach.

Yet high school coaches are not paid that much. So it isn't about how great a teacher they are.

And since when did great teaching equate to financial reward? There are great teachers of math, and biology, and auto body. But they don't get paid anything like head college coaches.

So it isn't the teaching skill that makes them worth the money, because we don't value teaching that much. (Every teacher in the country will agree to that.)


Or can you explain the difference between where OU was with John Blake and Bob Stoops?

But that has just as much to say about Blake as it does Stoops. You don't gauge the worth of a CEO by how bad some other CEOs are.


Great coaches are worth their pay because not everyone is a great coach!

Using this reasoning, there is no limit as to how much a coach should get paid. Should we pay Stoops $10 million a year? $20 million a year? Where does it stop?

We all want our favorite team to win. We all want our favorite coach to stay on. Does that mean price is no object?

[Collier11]

Answer my reasoning first before you dismiss Stoops salary or others like his

[Leroy Lizard]

1) Bob Stoops for example is given full responsibility of over 100 18-22 yr olds every year, it is on him to make sure they go to class, stay out of trouble, graduate, become good people, learn responsibility, win football games, stay healthy, etc...

But that's true of every coach in the country.


2) Our athletic dept was something crazy like $34 million in debt when Stoops took over(correct me on exact numbers if im wrong) and now they are nearly even. Thats not the football program, thats the entire athletic department. While I will agree that some coaches are not worth so much, It could be argued that Stoops is worth more than the $3 million he is making.

But the debt incurred by OU was more about how bad Blake was.

Agian, Costco brings in tons more money than any college football program, so on a pure financial basis I don't see any reason why a head coach should make anything close to what the Costco CEO brings in.

We all agree that Stoops is a great coach, and has done great things for our program. But what is fair compensation? Based on what the going rate is in industry, and given the low cost of living in OK, it appears to me that $3 million per year is far too high.

But again, this isn't about Stoops. It's about college coaching in general. I am not saying Stoops is overpaid in comparison to his peers, but that college coaches are overpaid in general.

[Leroy Lizard]

The market sets the salary, not what they're worth or what revenues are or whatever.

Using that reasoning, no one can ever be overpaid or underpaid. And to a certain extent, that is true.

What I am saying is that a head coach's salary is not based on economic sense, but on an emotional distaste for losing football games. We are letting pride in a football team dictate salaries, not revenues. And in that sense, college coaches are overpaid.

[Leroy Lizard]

And, look at the Management structure of a place like Cosco.

You take it down to the store level and you are look at probably at least 10 times more positions than UT football.

Yet Costco made $242 million in PROFIT. Taking into account all of the salaries made by top-level managers, Costco still cleared $242 million. That's because, like UT football, there is a huge drop-off in salaries once you go lower than the top-level management.

How much profit did UT's athletic department make? $20 million?

And Mack Brown isn't even the CEO; he is only a division manager.

[Leroy Lizard]

So therefore you are saying that almost all coaches are being paid a non-market rate. This actually makes no sense, as the market rate for coaches is derived from the coaching market.

No, I am saying that the market rate is being driven by influences other than economics.

If I have the Mona Lisa, and I threaten to tear up the painting unless I am paid (say) a billion dollars and I get it, that doesn't mean that a billion dollars is the market rate for the painting. It means that emotional extortion ("the Mona Lisa will be lost forever!") is driving the price, not the market.

That is just an analogy, of course.

Here is an even better analogy: You go out shopping with your wife, and she sees a pair of shoes she wants. Her friend has a pair, and she doesn't want her friend to think that she can't afford it. The shop owner hears this and, because he knows your wife is dying for the pair of shoes, jacks the price up. It's all fair, of course, but you are, in fact, paying too much for the shoes.

We are all aware of merchandise that is overpriced because of such ridiculous emotions.

So in college football, the fear of losing football games and, therefore, losing pride in the university is what drives up salaries, not how much revenue the team brings in. Even the most profitable athletic department in the country (UT, I think) doesn't really make that much money. But coaches know that, on an emotional basis, they have us over a barrel. The fans hate losing so much that they demand the coach gets anything he wants.

Those that think coaches are worth it monetarily will have a hard time explaining Sherri Coales' salary, given that women's basketball probably doesn't make a dime in profit.

[AlbqSooner]

He is staying. He is staying pretty much on his terms. Go to bed Leroy.