While perusing the opinion section of the Michigan Daily, which I do as some sort of masochistic act, I stumbled on yet another letter to the editor saying that Coach Rod should pay up. It’s the third and final letter. I posted my response in the comments there, but I thought I’d repost it over here as it kind of summarizes my opinion on the buy-out kerfuffle.
Mr. Pence:I believe at this point Coach Rodriguez isn’t fighting to reduce his buyout as purely financial matter. If he was worried about paying, the university has some wealthy alums that could easily write a check for the $4M.
At this point, Coach Rodriguez is, most likely, continuing this fight out of principle. When he signed his extension there were promises made to him by Mr. Pastilong some as small as allowing his student athletes to keep their textbooks or an additional graduate assistant. Mr. Pastilong did not come through on his promises and, additionally, siphoned money away from a fund that was supposed to be exclusively for football and put it in the general fund.
Coach Rodriguez did not feel he was getting the respect or the gratitude or the support due to a coach who took middle-of-the-road team and turned them into a national championship contending money maker. Add into that the smear campaign propagated by the WVU administration and the unreasonable threats to his and his family’s safety by West Virginia “Fans,” it does not appear surprising at all that he wouldn’t want to just pay them.
Coach Rodriguez gave WVU seven years and a top tier football team. He changed jobs after they reneged on promises and suffered through death threats and you want him to pay $4M? He has an axe to grind, and it seems to be the American way to grind your axe in court.
If Coach Rod wanted it to be easy and get it done, he would have had it paid for already. He just doesn’t want to give his crazy ex-girlfriend a really nice break-up gift after she went through his phone and txted “u whore!!” to all the girls in his contact list.
Posted under Coaching
Tags: buyout, I posted, rich rodriguez
im brakeing up with u
that’s not entirely true. the arguments he’s making to get out paying the 4M are purely legalistic. its not really a matter of pride. furthermore, no one scoffs at paying this amount of money, not him or the school. while the school may have an endowment upwards of 9B, it’s surely not going to piss it away if it doesn’t technically have to. m.rod certainly doesn’t have the 4m laying around either.
I have to disagree. The motivations are not purely legalistic. If RichRod wanted to follow the letter of the law and finish the matter, he would have paid the $4M.
It’s not so much about the money as proving his former employer wrong.
As far as paying for the buyout… Stephen M. Ross donated $100M to the Business School plus what it took to name the athletic academic center in his name. You or RichRod may not scoff at $4M, but there are some UofM alums who do.