Nah, of course not… the U.S. Secretary of Education is just sayin’:
Escalating coaches’ salaries are the single largest contributing factor to the unsustainable growth of athletic expenditures. And we believe that universities and colleges must start rethinking coaches’ compensation, at least in the Division I revenue sports.
If universities and colleges want to readjust a coach’s priorities, they need to change the penalties and incentives they offer coaches.
And why is Duncan convinced drastic action must be taken?
Coaches today earn whatever the market pays. But many coaches work at public universities, funded with taxpayer dollars. In 2011, in Oklahoma, Connecticut and Maryland, a head football or basketball coach was not only the highest-paid employee at the university but the highest-paid state employee.
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin earned $147,000 in 2011, while the football coach at the University of Oklahoma, Bob Stoops, was paid $4.875 million, 33 times as much as Gov. Fallin. Moreover, nine Oklahoma football assistant coaches were paid more than the governor, including the tight ends/tackles coach, who pulled down a $240,000 salary.
Successful head coaches’ salaries should be tied to what their governors make? Good luck with that argument, fellas. Does Fallin have a tie-in shoe deal?