I understand that Tennessee’s football program is a bit of a dumpster fire, which means that Dave Hart had to stretch some to replace SOD, but, still, Georgia’s athletic department is rolling in dough while the Vols are hurting…
As it attempts to rejuvenate its football program, Tennessee’s athletic department is working at a financial disadvantage. The athletic department reported a $3.98 million budget deficit for the 2011-12 fiscal year that caused its reserve to drop to $1.9 million, the lowest total in the Southeastern Conference.
Hart noted that other SEC schools have reserve of anywhere from $50 million to $100 million. Hart said he eventually wants to build the reserves back up to $50 million, though he didn’t set a timetable for it.
So how is it that Butch Jones has a higher salary than Mark Richt?
Get The Picture 
Richt’s not motivated by salary, but I have to believe our parsimony affects the ability to attract other coaches here.
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.. and what happens if Butch Jones doesn’t work out and they have to buyout more salary? or are UT coaches on a three year contract these days?
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Since Butch Jones received a six year contract, I would expect a lot of coordinators will be fired if things do not work out well on the field.
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Considering that you’re so much more likely to get robbed by your own players at UT, it helps to have a little cushion in the bank account to replace all of your belongings. When you factor in the payoffs to off duty cops your players leave bleeding unconscious in the streets, Knoxville’s actually a pretty expensive place to live.
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I understand Tennessee still has an outstanding $11M obligation to football contract buyout clauses. This includes Derek Dooley, his terminated assistants, and Tennessee’s contribution to Butch Jones’ Cincinnati buyout.
When you also consider the $1M buyout for Bruce Pearl’s termination and Lane Kiffin pulling out another $1.2M to make his dad the highest paid assistant in college football in 2010, you begin to realize the depth of the financial hole they are in.
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Can’t they just raise their debt ceiling? Is that a problem? Cojones?
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If the University Tennessee were to acquire the power to print money, devalue the other SEC schools’ reserves, and confiscate the earnings of its highest contributors, I am sure they would have no problem with it.
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Hire Warren Buffett as AD. He already thinks he is taxed too low when it comes to supporting his country from whom all his blessings flow. Of course his wisdom would be counter-culture at Tenn at the moment. The rednecks might give him a hard time for voting for Obama (as did the Hispanics and me), but probably would give him a worse time over raising their debt ceiling to pay off their new shiny athletic center they already allocated money for and now cannot get the Tenn Cong- I mean administration to pay their bills.
Is that sorta what you had in mind, AHD?
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It is a good thing money is not Coach Richt’s main motivation.
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as my Dad used to say, that “Bassackwards.”
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Butch and Butch’s agent put Dave’s subconcious into full-blown fiscally irresponsible hypnotic trance when Butch said, “Dave, this is my dream job”?
http://coachingsearch.com/news/1959-butch-jones-i-was-my-wifes-third-choice-and-its-worked-out-well-for-20-years.html
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Me thinks there is a reason that UT is broke..
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Well in fairness, Butch Jones has lost 29 fewer SEC conference games than Mark Richt, so it makes sense to me that he would earn more money.
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Damn, I just about spit my Coke on my keyboard with that one! Well played!
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Plus Richt will be fired this season when he fails to start our best QB (Hutson Mason for those of you new to these parts) and fails to win “The Big One” which will be whichever loss comes first…Clempsun, USCe, LSU, Floriduh, Auburn, or Tech. So why would you pay him more?
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For placing us second only to the NC in the SEC. Starting underpaid would be another reason to raise his pay.
Your same reasoning was underfoot last year and the year before. Some of you don’t want Richt to ever be paid and that may have something to do with that erroneous prescience displayed each year by the chrystal-ball staring oracles. You were wrong last year and the year before. You guys just have to stop embarrassing yourselves and get behind your winning coach. Twenty wins in two seasons ain’t bad.
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Anybody know what their donations and ticket sales look like since the slide began? You would expect their finances are approaching the point where they become unable to compete because they can’t keep up in facilities or recruiting.
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Worse. UT is 6 games below .500 since the end of the 2007 season. The Vols have had only 1 winning season during that stretch (7-6 in ’09) and are considered to be irrelevant by most recruits. They are at best 4th in the SEC East and Vandy is beating down their collective necks having beaten the Vols last season and looking like the better program now. Butch Jones is not the answer and they will fire him in 3 years, pay a whopping buyout, then do it all over again. UT is fast becoming the new UK. Why would any good player even think about going there now?
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Because they value their coaches more than we do? If you disrespect and hold your coach in low esteem publicly for everyone to ask “What’s wrong?”, what do you expect?
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“Little” Louisville paying Strong 3.7 mil/yr? This is really screwed up!
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Cujo, have you not been paying attention to what the UT trailer trash had been saying about Dooley before he was canned and his predecessor when the Lamer left? Disrespect is not sufficient to describe it.
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Man that Hamilton guy was a trainwreck in every sense of the word.
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There were no red panties involved in the Hamilton train wreck . If uT could swap train wrecks do you think they would opp for ours?
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It’s simple economics. UT priced them selves off the market. They reduced the size of the seats (ever tried fitting in one?) while jacking up ticket prices and the minimum donation for seats. Also the concessions are over-priced. I can remember the stadium being packed back when Majors had losing seasons. It’s just pure and simple greed of ripping off the fans and now they are suffering the consequences of their actions.
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To top it all off a whole lot of UT fans were underwhelmed by the hire. He better be a miracle worker to help UT.
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TN has the VERY dumbest of fans in all of CFB. They supported Junior even when he was spitting in their faces and making fun of their traditions. I am convinced they would support Chizik, Petrino, and Sandusky if he were wearing their ugly colors and standing on their sidelines. They deserve whatever happens to their program, but they will not not stop donating. It is their belief they are one of the most sought after jobs in all of sports. 15 years since their last SEC title, I had predicted in 2004 that they might go longer than our 20 year drought they made so much fun of. I couldn’t enjoy this any more if it were happening to any of our rivals….I hope they break Florida’s record for years without an SEC title (of course SC is at 20 and counting already so they have first shot.)
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While tenure and longevity still count for something, this is yet another example of it not paying to stick with one employer for too long. I wonder what Richt would receive should he be on the open market?
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More. And his replacement at Georgia would receive more, too – at least if they went outside the program to hire.
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Yep. And we are a bunch of blind hammerknockers for not seeing that. PAY THA’ MAN!
That goes for Bobo and others as well.
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CFB or Pro coaching is one of the few professions that has been absolutely bulletproof. If anything, the demand has escalated since 2008 – certainly counter to most careers aside from law, particular commercial and RE litigation, bankruptcy, and personal injury cockroaches…err attorneys.
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Dentists occupy the highest paid profession. Check them out to see how much they have escalated.
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