What's a football coach worth?

• College football millionaire's club

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff Writer

Bob Stoops of Oklahoma, left, the highest-paid college football coach in the country; at right, UH's June Jones. Advertiser library photo

With Bob Stoops, who has a $2 million-per-year contract at Oklahoma, and Steve Spurrier, who just left a $2 million plus deal at Florida for the Washington Redskins, both on the South squad, Klompus still might not have enough left to pay North head coach Dennis Erickson, who has "just" a $900,000 contract at Oregon State.

That college football salaries are very much a growth industry these days is not lost on the University of Hawai'i, which is a month into negotiating a landmark contract extension with football coach June Jones.

Speculation in Manoa has it that Jones' eventual package will be worth double his present $320,000 package — or more.

Jones' agent and long-time friend, Leigh Steinberg, declined to disclose specifics of the negotiations, other than to say that when completed he expects, "the package to meet the needs of both UH and June."

For Hawai'i, where Jones already earns more than triple the governor's salary, they could be eye-opening numbers. But in the national scope of things, where 18 percent of the 117 Division IA football coaches make $1 million or more and as many as 10 more are an incentive clause away from joining the Millionaire's Club, a new deal might place Jones slightly above the national average of $540,000.

'You pay what the market is'

UH President Evan Dobelle, who at $442,000, is the state's highest paid official, wouldn't have, "any philosophical opposition" to the football coach earning more than he does, according to Paul Costello, UH vice president for external affairs. "He would just expect Coach Jones to pick up the tab at Murphy's."

Said Costello: "You pay what the market is."

And it is a bull market these days. The national average has gone up nearly $100,000 in three years, according to figures from a survey by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics.

Twenty years ago this spring, it was considered shocking when Texas A&M gave Jackie Sherrill a $250,000 contract, then the highest in the industry.

Now, academic watchdog groups are saying the brakes should be applied. In a report released last summer, the Knight Commission asked colleges to, "consider coaches' compensation in the context of the academic institutions that employ them. Their compensation should be brought into line with prevailing norms across the institution."

Nationally, the average salary for a full professor at a doctoral university has risen about 3.5 percent per year to $83,207 in 1999, the last year for which figures have been available. At UH the figure is $78,300.

Costello said Dobelle "doesn't presume" Jones' eventual contract will cause problems with the faculty.

Jones, who is 21-16 in three seasons at UH, heads the school's most visible sport, one that is responsible for approximately $1.5 million in revenue above what it costs to run the football program, according to school officials.

Jones' contract watch

To come to UH, Jones left a reported four-year, $3 million contract offer from the San Diego Chargers in 1998 for a five-year deal at UH that is believed to be worth approximately $320,000 plus incentives.

It is UH policy to release only the base salary range for a position. The range for head football coach is $99,996-$199,992, according to a spokesman for the UH Board of Regents, which sets the ranges and must approve all contracts.

Jones' base salary is believed to be approximately $180,000 with the remaining $140,000 underwritten by Na Koa, the football booster club, as well as radio, television and merchandise deals. That ranked him atop the 10-school Western Athletic Conference at the start of the season.

Since then, Fresno State's Pat Hill has received a new contract that pays him more than $350,000, and will reportedly provide a booster club-funded annuity if he stays the length of his five-year deal.

Meanwhile, a lot of people are watching to see how UH handles Jones' contract — not all of them in the athletic department.

Riley Wallace, the dean of WAC men's basketball coaches with 15 seasons, has a base salary of $108,500, which ranks near the bottom of the conference. And Wahine volleyball coach Dave Shoji, who has the school's only three national championships, has a base salary of approximately $95,000, which trails several major programs.

Jim Dator, director of the Center for Future Studies and a political science professor at UH, said he views the prospects of higher athletic salaries in a mixed light. On one hand, Dator said Dobelle's stated commitment to raising salaries at the school is a positive sign but, "that he is starting with his coaches might puzzle some of us."