Agent: Not copying others in letter an oversight
BY DON WILLIAMS l AVALANCHE-JOURNAL
An agent for Texas Tech coach Mike Leach says his failure to include the university’s chancellor, president and athletic director on a controversial e-mail to Tech regents was an oversight he quickly rectified.
Matt Baldwin e-mailed eight regents on Jan. 15 to clear up what he described as “some misinformation about our position’’ regarding Tech’s most recent contract offer to Leach.
The Avalanche-Journal obtained new e-mails Monday night from IMG Coaches, who employ Baldwin and Gary O’Hagan, Leach’s agents. Among the contents is the original e-mail that raised a regent’s ire and another that copied in Tech Chancellor Kent Hance, President Guy Bailey and athletic director Gerald Myers. The original e-mail was time stamped 5:42 p.m. Jan. 15, the second at 7:01 p.m. the same day.
The first e-mail was contained in Tech’s response to an open records request from the A-J seeking documents pertaining to the negotiations. The second e-mail could not be located in Tech’s response.
Myers acknowledged on Monday night receiving the belated e-mail, but said he’d already been advised of the original.
“I just know the Chancellor told me about it before I saw the copy,’’ Myers said.
Just before lunchtime on Jan. 16, then-Regents chairman Scott Dueser sent Baldwin a harsh response, saying he was out of line e-mailing the regents directly without courtesy copies to Hance, Bailey and Myers. He suggested Baldwin might have been trying to undermine Tech’s leadership and divide the board and told him to stop e-mailing regents.
A few hours later, an IMG senior attorney tried to do damage control with an e-mail to Dueser. John Raleigh told Dueser he had seen the regent chairman’s criticism.
“I want to assure you that Matt did, in fact, forward a copy of his email to Mr. Hance, Mr. Bailey and Mr. Myers,’’ Raleigh wrote. “He forwarded it to them immediately after sending the original email. … Perhaps it would have been better to show them as copies to the original email instead of forwarding it to them in a separate email, but I can assure you that there was no intent to divide the Board or undermine the Chancellor, President and Athletic Director.’’
Raleigh said the only reason the e-mail was sent to regents was to answer questions Leach had been getting from board members.
Hance told the A-J late Tuesday he’s been told no board members have talked to Leach.
“The Board of Regents in December, again in January and again last week assured us they have not talked to Leach or his agents. (The agents) e-mail that says (they are) trying to clear this up is just false,” said Hance.
“The truth of the matter is they didn’t get everything they wanted from Gerald Myers and asked to speak to me . They didn’t get everything they wanted from me and then went to (President) Guy Bailey. Then they contacted the board and since they couldn’t get it from the board they decided to play this out in the press. It’s sad that he has these type of people representing him. Mike is a better man,” said Hance.
“For Texas Tech and Mike Leach’s sake he needs to sign the contract and get back to coaching football,” said Hance.
The new e-mails also show a former member of the board has had contact with both sides in the negotiations. In mid-December, Jim Sowell solicited from Baldwin copies of the other Big 12 head coaches’ contracts and gave advice to Hance on another matter involving Leach’s contract.
Leach, who has two years left on his contract, said last week he won’t sign the extension. The two sides agree on $12.7 millon over five years. The issue is from four clauses Tech inserted in its latest proposal, presented Jan. 9.
The e-mails obtained from IMG reveal more of the negotiations. Tech offered Leach a five-year, $12.1-million deal on Dec. 5.
The same day, in a cordial e-mail to the Tech president, Baldwin pitched the agents’ belief Leach should have a seven-year contract averaging $3 million a year — an amount and length the agents have since backed off on.
“Reason being,’’ Baldwin wrote, “a five-year deal will put us back at the negotiating table within one year, as it is difficult to convince student-athletes that you will be around for their graduation when you only have four years left on your contract, which has been the case for Mike during the past two years.’’
Part of the agents’ Dec. 16 counter-proposal to Tech’s offer was for Leach to become athletic director for football and report directly to the chancellor. The A-J reported that Saturday.
The new correspondence shows Baldwin also included Leach’s desire for more say-so in the Dec. 5 e-mail to Bailey. He told the president, “Mike would like to have more control and authority over the football program, including managing the budget and scheduling.’’
The A-J reported in early December that Bailey’s friendly relationship with Leach could help the negotiations, which seems to be echoed in the tone of Baldwin’s e-mail to him.
“Mike thinks highly of you and values your presence at Texas Tech,’’ Baldwin said.
Leach’s agents in December proposed reworking his contract completion bonuses. On Leach’s current contract, he is due a bonus of $800,000 on Dec. 31, 2009, if he’s still Tech’s coach and another $200,000 on Dec. 31, 2010, if he’s still at Tech. Baldwin suggested to Bailey the two items go into Leach’s total guaranteed compensation and a $1.5 million retention bonus be added payable on Dec. 31, 2013.
In a Dec. 17 e-mail to Hance, Baldwin proposed transforming the completion bonuses into a deferred compensation plan in which Leach would be vested $600,000 on Dec. 31, 2008; $200,000 on Nov. 1, 2009, and $200,000 on Nov. 1, 2010.
Hance forwarded the e-mail later that day to Sowell. About two hours later, Sowell wrote back:
“Kent, I wouldn’t do this, he hasn’t earned one dime of the completion bonus yet, so none should be vested or else we should call this the ‘Not Quite Completed Completion Bonus.’ If he would’ve taken the Washington job we wouldn’t owe him a penny of this bonus. If he takes a job after next season we don’t owe him a penny of it. Why would we even think about vesting any of this for him? Mike says he has ‘earned’ $800,000 of this completion bonus. He is a smart guy; I think he knows the definition of the word ‘completion.’ I consider this an example of bad faith negotiations on their part.’’
The latest offer and counter offer show the two sides agreeing on a $600,000 contract completion bonus payable at the end of 2013.
To comment on this story:
don.williams@lubbockonline.com 766-8734
jeff.walker@lubbockonline.com 766-8735
- Expanded Coverage
Feb 17, 2009
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• Clock running down on contract
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• Both sides frustrated with Leach contract process
• Records reveal regent’s frustration with agents
• Texas Tech’s Dec. 5 proposal for Mike Leach’s Contract Extension
• Mike Leach’s Dec. 5 Contract Counter-Offer
• Continued: Mike Leach’s Dec. 5 Contract Counter-Offer
• Texas Tech’s Jan. 9 proposal for Mike Leach’s Contract Extension
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This is embarassing now…and Leach and his agents are right. Leach’s contract should never be under 4 years, for any reason. This should have been taken care of a long time ago, preferably after the 2006 season. Leach finally has built the program, has the facilities, bringing in the recruits, national TV audiences…and this is how TTU takes care of him?
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Come on, these aren’t grown-up people here, surely. And they’re certainly not respectable — any of them. Sleeze balls all. You can’t fool me.
My kids act like this, only about toys, not money & power.
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Why can’t Coach and the University talk directly? When there are more people in the mix everyone trys to pull the power trip. Come on Leach sign the damn contract!
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This posturing and “spin” have gotten old. Meet and get this deal done or admit that all involved have the emotional maturity of junior high “steadies” and break up. Do what’s right for Texas Tech. Meet and mediate: get the contract done and stop trying to justify, rationalize or demonize each other in the press.
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Pretty simple really. Leach doesn’t have to sit down with Tech & show his ignorance and the more $’s involved (salary, deferred comp. etc.) the more the agents receive. Does Tech really need a coach that is this much of a pain in the b###!
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At every home basketball game, the students need two chants:
WE WANT LEACH
FIRE MYERS
Throughout the game
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S&B, you’ve got it backwards! Why would an AD give a rip about a coach he can only contact through his lawyer? Leach has the maturity level of an eight year old!
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As fans we all have our wants and opinions. Hopefully they are all aligned to the betterment of TTU.
The on-going saga of these negotiations are fraught with mis-information. The posturing may even include the media.
The email sent to the regents w/o out the CC’s was just as available through the open records act as was the first email…yeah, sure, the data was obtained in the time gap between email one and email two.
And, yeah, sure, the second email was sent because the originator realized the blunder, via what means?
How does Sowells request for information translate to involvement with the negotiations in the context that the BOR should be emailed by the agents w/o involving the admin or even with the admin as CC’s? According to the above, he simply asked for information.
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I’VE BEEN SAYING FOR 20 YEARS PLUS TO GET RIG OF GERALD MYERS. THE ONLY THING HE HAS EVER BEEN BEEN CONCERNED ABOUT IS MAKING HIMSELF LOOK GOOD IN THE EYES OF THE SPORTS WORLD. HE IS AS GOOD A NEGOTIATOR AS HE WAS IN THE LAST YEARS OF HIS BASKETBALL PROGRAM. IN OTHER WORDS ZILCH ABILITIES. IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN IF GERALD IS HAPPY THE REST OF US ARE UNHAPPY. WHY SHOULDN’T MIKE HAVE MORE SAY IN THE PROGRAM THAT HE KNOWS THE BEST AND THE PLAYERS HE KNOWS THE BEST.
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Hey, if Leach wants to interview with other schools without the possibility of getting fired-let him (it’s a free country, free market, hooray for capitalism). The more he’s paid-the less he’ll “look around”.
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Pay for performance and pay market rate….that being said….very tired of the Leach annual job dance and after being big Myers defender…getting tired of GOB mentality….I know TTU will never had UT money unless some alum donates a billion or two to let us compete on better footing, but we have to be more progressive….this contract issue is making ALL involved look so bad and make fans/supports just want to wash hands of both parties. Please come to some sort of understanding soon..
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These are the same good ole’ boys and regents that signed off on the Sharpe and Knight deals that continue to bleed the department dry! Since when did they get so damn smart about football Coaches?
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Tech BOR and GM strip the four contentious conditions and pay Leach $100,000.00 a year and be done with it. That’s a very reasonable livable wage for Lubbock and Leach can be happy with that (he can thus say he won).
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Let’s let this disagreement continue until the end of Leach’s contract – this is extra entertainment. We who are not TTU alumni enjoy it so much.
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Let me get this strait…. first ten win season since 70’s…
highest home attendance since???… major media attention…. some of the most watched games in NCAA football history, let alone Tech’s… one of very few Cotton Bowl invites..major ticket price increase….and we can’t get this deal done because Gerald Myers got his panties in a buch about a flight to U W. Leach has been here 9 years and that doesn’t count for loyalty. Throwing a hissy fit, complete with ultimatums does reflect good ole west texas values? For all those who want to move on, you better becarefull what you wish for ’cause you just might get it.
ps. what kind of coach do you think will work for a heavy handed administration that rewards record breaking success with bitterness and resentment?
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If Tech fans , regents, chancellor, AD, etc. don’t believe that Mike Leach is worth 7 years at 3 million a year we might as well give up on sports. Our current athletic department has only one high profile bright spot, Mike Leach and the Football program. Pay Leach what he’s worth and begin the search for a new AD.
GO TECH!!!
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This is the result of the litigous society we have created. How can anything come to a conclusion when the people who are making money benefit from continuing negotiation?
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I can understand the frustration, on both sides, but Mike Leach has done more for this program than we have seen anybody else do. I feel both sides should sit down and talk it out, and not send e-mails back and forth that accomplish nothing. Let the man who has turned the program around have his control and his name. Listen I bleed RED & BLACK and support my team win or lose, but would really love to see us continue to get better instead of starting all over again. We can win a championship here, others might laugh, but we can. All we need is some stability, longevity, that will help us a lot. So laugh it up UT and OU, The RED RAIDERS will get it together and when we do………. GUNS UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Yes indeed.
Both sides should sit down….maybe over lunch at United Market Street, and have a civil discussion.
ouuugh, Myers is banned from there since he and Knight Sr. & ex-Prez Schmidly all met there a couple of years ago and had fisticuffs and a food fight during one of Myers “discussions”.
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ahem, yes, well, we must all remember the calibur of men we’re talking about here.
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More and more, this sounds like Myers trying to throw Leach under the bus.
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Redraiderjohn, some if not most of this so-called job hunt Leach is doing is being spread by other teams in the Big 12 that are trying to get a leg up on recruiting. It’s been said by several recruits, one in particular who went to Tennessee even, that there was talk about Leach leaving. That coach at Tennessee is no longer there. How ironic. Leach is STILL at Tech and telling most schools NO. If you don’t believe me, read.
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Please get this deal done so we can have some freaking closure, jeez. To put any items on a deal then say we are closing negotiations is an insult to the integrity of the process. Since those 4 items were new to the contract and never discussed prior to adding them, it is poor judgement to set a sign or else date and pretend the contract is in good faith. Sit down, have dialog and sort this out. As for expecting him to turn over his name and likeness, Leach would be insane to sign that, and both sides know this. The other issues, should be discussed by both sides give and take. But get it done. Don’t continue to embarass the University and please don’t keep our recruits in limbo like this. Sure we signed a great class this year, but if we don’t get this resolved, and our coach goes into next season with only two years left, we’ll be lucky to compete with Rice for recruits, muchless take three away from Oklahoma as Leach did this year. The tickets are more expensive, the university is adding luxury boxes and adding more seats to the stadium, Myers and Hance, you owe the alumni, fans and students your attendance at the negotiating table. There is obviously bad blood between Leach and Myers, and between Hance, Myers and IMG, but enough is enough, just get back to the table and negotiate, regardless of the outcome, give this mess some closure.
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whether you are for coach Leach or not one thing I have observed – the tide is turning against Leach. He has successfully alienated the administration against him. And, over the course of the last 90 days or so I feel the majority of commentors on this site have grown weary of all this b/s. Yeah, I still like Leach, but I am ready to see him leave as I feel he has become too antagonistic. I think everyone would agree that in a good relationship, well, it should come easy – ya shouldn’t have to work on it too much not if there is mutual respect anyway.
Don’t you people see that with coach Leach and his Minnesota Al Franken IMG agents all they care about is MONEY – really!!! The audacity they wanted $3,000,000 and over 7 years and he has never won us a BIG 12 conf championship yet. Nearly half his wins come against schools I am embarrassed to even play and then we get in a bowl and God help us!!!!! Does this put the Leacher up their with AIG, etc? I don’t really think so, but that is the job of his agents – to suck out all our money.
Whatever happened to the quick to listen and slow to anger theory? Whatever happened to that good ole college try once more? I guess it all left with the agents on the last flite to Paris or Tahiti. Dang it – I just want a coach that likes us and beats Texas and OU in same year and wants to hang with, uh, Lubbockites. It can happen.
In fact, as said before, these guys are probably just gonna be polite to each other while avoiding each other until next December when Chancellor Hance fires Leach and we buy out his last yr of contract. Hell will surely freeze over before he gets an extension now after all this mess. In fact the $800,000 we have reserved for his “completion” bonus next December will probably buy him out unless he takes another job. And, I am probably sure he will be looking. Who knows – if he screws up next season for whatever reason he could be gone my mid season – whatever.
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Hey! If Coach Leach and the AD office don’t get together on this contract by when – Feb 17? – doesn’t that mean Mr Leach is sort of a lame duck coach with only two yrs left on his contract? And, in fact if Coach Leach were to get fired at some point next season prior to Dec 31st, well, he would no longer qualify for his 12/31 $800,000 partial completion bonus as I read it. So, if that money is basically reserved we could use it for a buy out!! Not so bad after all – Ha!
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Exactly, Sherlock! You should be a private dedective!! And if the $800,000 isn’t enough Midland Red Raider oil men certainly will help out! I imagine Dallas could be counted on as well.
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Any Conservative Republican could/would chip in at least $50,000 to the cause.
Boy the hired help we Republicans have to put up with these days!!
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HEY –A-J — WHAT HAPPENED TO THE ARTICLE’S PICTURE OF COACH LEACH BEING ESCORTED OFF THE COTTON BOWL FIELD BY A TEXAS RANGER?
WERE YOU FIDDLING WITH HIS COPYRIGHTED IMAGE/PERSONA??
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Not to worry, folks. Regardless of how much negative reporting is done by “enemy” media, Mr. Leach and Tech will work it out. Leach needs Tech. Tech needs Leach. This is easy.
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From John: “Hey, if Leach wants to interview with other schools without the possibility of getting fired-let him (it’s a free country, free market, hooray for capitalism). The more he’s paid-the less he’ll “look around”.”
Now that’s a fine example of ignorance.
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I wonder if Gerald Myers is a basketball guy who just can’t pony up the money for a winning football guy? He can pay a new football coach some new coach money, but just can’t get to the winning coach money. Hence, the note to Coach’s agents that the budget is about topped out and Coach could look elsewhere.
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- Mike Leach
+ Art Briles
= Tech wins!
Does anyone else really want Leach? Auburn wouldn’t even sniff him despite his agents pimping him out to the four corners of the nation. Did Washington really want him either?
Hold firm Tech and he will eventually sign. Besides, what ever happened to someone honoring the contract they signed. I don’t have sympathy for someone wanting to get paid for work they haven’t done. Sounds similar to the jokers who have put our economy in a tailspin.
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Someone should have retained the servicesof a mediator for the athletic dept side to negotiate with Leach’s agents. Gerald had no business allowing dialogue to occur between himself and the agents, nor should he have allowed Gleason to talk on the athletic Dept’s behalf. Look at whats happened, even when Kent Hance stepped in and the board of regents are in dialogue with the agents. What a joke. We have a lot of animosity on both sides and we look like the laughing stock of the Big 12 on this deal. Leach is a great coach, the players and fans love him. Opponents respect him and he has filled the Jones and been to a bowl game every year. Bobby Knight didnt do as well in basketball and that left some more egg on Gerald’s face. Stand down Gerald old boy and let Leach have what he wants and lets move on down the field.
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Let’s set up a Wrestling match up pitting Leach’s Agent(s) vs Gerald Meyers at the Market Street Salad Bar. The winner get’s to write up the contract, and wins the Market Street Heavyweight Championship of Lubbock.
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Why is Gerald Myers still AD? Shouldn’t somebody have fired him by now? He has botched this effort beyond repair. Does he have pictures of Hance in bed with a goat? Is that how he’s been able to remain employed? I don’t understand it.
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Gitter…done
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This whole thing is rediculous. If Leach wanted to be at Texas Tech he would sign the contract. He clearly has no respect for TTU or what the school has done for him. Leach would probably still be at OU as an assistant if it weren’t for TTU. My message for Leach is “you havent done ANYTHING”. No big 12 championship, no national championship, cant beat OU and UT in the same year…etc. Congrats on going 11-2 and losing a bowl game you should have won. I’m tired of Tech settling for mediocrity and thats what Mike Leach is…mediocre.
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Is Myers, the great negotiator, the sole person responsible for moving the Texas game to Sept 19th? Surely not! With his bargaining skills one can just imagine the conversation….. “Listen, I don’t care how many people will watch the game. We’re not moving it, just to fit your schedule. If you want us, you have to cover the game as scheduled. Besides, I doubt if our team, especially the skill position guys, will be ready to face Texas on National TV that early in the season. On second thought ….”
FIRE MYERS!
PROMOTE LEACH!
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just change the rules on the contract so he can sign it. what difference does it make? what happened to our basketball teams? For all those who are saying leach is acting like a kid , how much do you know about the first contract? why change it? and yes we need this coach, along with a defense and everything wil be alright.
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Elwood ‘78 , you just showed your stupidity and ignorance of the facts. Our successfull program at the moment is Track and Field. Leach is not God and doesn’t deserve to be worshipped. If you want Leach, like I do, you would be better served by convincing him that the contract should be signed.
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melvin block, just don’t let GM order the salad.
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From The Sporting News:
There’s a reason Leach has interviewed for a few jobs and inquired about many others. It has nothing to do with money; $2 million a year is more than enough for most coaches.
It’s more than buyout clauses or any other sticking point attorneys are haggling over. At some point, jobs become secondary to this overriding factor: quality of life.
If you knew nothing about Leach and his boss, Texas Tech AD Gerald Myers, you’d conclude that there is friction in the relationship — rather quickly — simply by following this contract saga the last two years.
Here’s more background: A close friend of Leach told me a story last fall that sums up the situation. When Bob Knight arrived at Tech in 2001 to coach basketball, Myers gave Knight Leach’s university parking spot.
Even though Leach was given another spot in the same lot, the move didn’t sit well. For the rest of the semester, Leach parked in a commuter lot and walked to work.
It’s more than money, everyone.
Is it really that hard for Myers and the university to see what they’ve got? It’s not easy recruiting to West Texas; it’s even harder when you play in the same division as Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M — schools that throw around Monopoly money for coaches and facilities.
All Leach has done in nine years is win 76 games and put the program on the national map. Leach was featured on 60 Minutes last fall, for the love of God.
Leach is six wins behind Spike Dykes for most wins in school history — and Dykes did it in 14 seasons. Maybe Myers is stalling on minutiae in the contract because he’s tired of Leach looking at other jobs.
Or maybe he should make it so his coach doesn’t have to look for other jobs.
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Knights an old man and Leach needs to work on his gut. These people are not adults!
In this economy which we have been left with, people should be rethinking their priorities and be greatful if they have a job, let alone an extended contract!
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Bottom line is, you don’t deliberately try to insult your only competent coach while the rest of your athletic department is going down the toilet. Not unless you’re a stupid redneck. What is it about an 11 win season that has Myers and Hance so upset? Too much national exposure? Would they prefer Tech join the Mountain West? Who are these bozos and who put them in charge in the first place?
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Myers is a hard head that hired Knight and belongs to the “good ole boys club” and that train is loooooong passed… I really hope Tech will stop acting like a “West Texas Good Ole Boy” and make a leap into the modern day and begin negotiations behind closed doors… you don’t see this happening with coaches who set records in wins do you??? What about building up your coach and program vs the way they have handled this???? Big time programs follow the paradigm of “You are as big as you see yourself” and in the past we haven’t seen ourselves as big as we needed to to attract the talent needed to compete… remember Florida State was a small teaching college with very little football tradition until they supported their coach for the long term and look how that paradigm turned out!!!
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Thank you Mark for posting the sporting news article. I read that article this morning and completely agree with it. Leach is the best coach Tech has ever had having put Tech on the college football map. He has also just finished the best season the school has ever had. All this aside, they are shoving him out the door. It doesn’t matter what Hyatt or anyone else here says because the national media is looking at this situation thinking that Tech administration is a complete joke. We will be watching this on all the shows on ESPN (PTI, Around the Horn, etc) and they will be blasting the university. Quit sayin how Leach doesn’t wanna be here when he’s only interviewed at one school months after Myers invited him to go look elsewhere, yet still withdrew his name from consideration days before they ever made a decision. He wants to be here, yet the administration with the help of local media is shoving their best coach away. Leach won’t be too hurt if he’s out of work next year. Look what a year out of work brought Lane Kiffin. However, this will tarnish Tech for a very long time. Hance needs to quit pretending he has a clue how to run a football program and take those garbage contract additions out so that Tech football can continue to build upon an amazing 2008 year.
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Mike, Mike should then walk in to GM office throw out an offer to coach for 100k with-out the 4 clauses. I bet Tech would accept that.
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yes watchdog…that’s exactly what he should do. you’re a genius
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If it’s not an issue of money and it’s only the 4 clauses; then it’s not rocket science!
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Leach has earned what he has coming and we should be proud of his accomplishments. we are not so proud of Hance or Myers accomplishments are we? As for loyalty, Hance was real loyal, (democrat) Myers is showing how stupid he can be. Has anyone thought about what a tech football game would be like next season without Leach coaching, how boring! then no one wants to go to this nice new stadium we spent all this money on. Mike Leach deserves to be paid a nice salary, lets reward him and make this great school worth bragging about. I`ll be real disappointed if we don`t get rid of Myers and Hance. these guys need to sit on the bench from here on out.
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Let me get this straight.
It is an unpardonable offense to send an e-mail to the Board of Regents, and fail to copy Hance and Myers, but then send them the e-mail about an hour later.
But, it is OK for Hance and Myers to only send only the most favorable parts (for thier case) of an Open Records Request to a news organization, thus breaking the law.
I don’t like any of this, not one bit.
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Since Myers has taken over, with the exception of Football and in some cases track, Baylor has risen to dominate over us in every other sport. Baseball, Men’s and Women’s basketball, mens and womens tennis, pretty consistently, year in and year out…. Now the only sport that beat them in, football, is at risk. The negotiations have been in bad faith because Myers strongly dislikes Leach, not sure why, but it is really apparent that he does. To add 4 items to teh contract at zero hour before he gets it,, then tell him sign it or else, and by the way, we are done negotiating is in terrible faith, That Kent Hance has for whatever reason joined in on that policy is disturbing. All sides need to get back to the table, because right now the only ones being screwed by all parties are the fans. Leach does need to stop shopping himself, if they agree, to every team that has an openning. This is ridiculous and it is really making our University look bad nationally.
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Jim Carlen, you were my favorite Tech coach, and I think you’re right about this one.
Boy, if I were coach at Tech, I’d sure hire an agent to deal with the likes of Hance & Myers. What immature slime-balls.
And what did Myers think Leach would do exactly when he told him back in August that this was the best he could offer and he wished him luck in his future jobs?
Sounded like an invitation to look-around to me.
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Raiderfan maybe GM doesn’t like Leach because he can’t talk to him like a man, has to have an agent as middle man. ;-)
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Leach talked to him for 7 years without an agent — a superhuman feat on Mike’s part.
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The upside of all this is I will have an extra $6,000 a year to spend on other things if Tech screws this up and lets Coach Leach go. That includes the annual Red Raider Club donation, season tickets and seat license fees, Southwest Airlines round trips from Dallas to Lubbock for the home games, airport parking, and random tailgating expenses.
If Myers and Hance don’t realize the financial hit they will take from hundreds if not thousands of people like me cutting them off, they aren’t very bright. But there has been nothing in their handling of Coach Leach that has given any indication that these guys know what they are doing.
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6K that’s all you spend? Gez that’ll influence GM and Tech a LOT! I don’t have a lot of those big ticket items and spend near what you do…
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Then I hope you enjoy 5-7 seasons and getting excited over the occasional win over the Aggies. That was our program in the 1980’s and that’s what you’ll be getting for your 6K if they run Leach off like they are trying to.
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Yes, GOGGO I’ll still be a Red Raider! Will be upset that Leach couldn’t be a man and get over the differences. How much many millions would it take for you to put up with a gumpy old boss? Personally I have to and for a lot less. Anyway I’ll still bleed red and black!
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Watchdog– why don’t you & Gerald have a nice salad at United Marketplace?
You’re on about the same mentality level.
You’d be in a food fight shoving match within 2 minutes.
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You buying?
Actually I’ll eat my salad.
I’ll get a pie if I need something to be to thrown! Maybe a Rasberry with dark chocolate topping.
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Mike Leach doesn’t work for Gerald Myers or Kent Hance. Mike Leach is talent. He contracts his talent out. Gerald Myers’ job is to make sure talent is kept happy so talent can keep bringing the wins to the football program. At least that’s how he should be approaching his job. Instead Myers thinks he is the manager of a McDonalds and Mike Leach is his fry cook. If Myers needs some proof to grasp this concept, he should compare his salary as AD and Kent Hance’s salary as Chancellor to Mike Leach’s salary as football coach. You tell me by who is paid the most who is more important to the university? Leach is paid the most by a factor of 3 or 4.
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Oh and the President of the United States, the most powerful job in the world compaired to your “god” Leach? Who’s paid more? Who is worth more? Your logic fit’s your position, but doesn’t hold water. Treat him like a god and he’ll walk all over you. He isn’t god, just a good coach.
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GoGeraldGo – ahum, some things are better left unsaid.
What about all the pomp and decorum and dignity and class that go with being AD & Prez?
Oh wait a minute! Myers & Hance have already revealed they don’t really have any, except for show. In their hearts they’re about as crafty as the 3 stooges.
They do, unfortunately, have the ability to call a deadline.
Leach, & alumni, & Raider club, etc. will have to live with their power to do that.
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errr…about the fight with GERALD vs. THE AGENTS…. Gerald Myers will without a doubt will KICK BUTT….That is why he will get his way with these contract negotiations. The WINNER is……by TKO……GERALD MYERS……GO TECH……and GO MYERS…..Show these Myers bashers that they can’t win.
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I couldn’t believe it when Tech hired Gerald Myers, and I really can’t believe he’s still there. Get rid of him!
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MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
MYERS MUST GO!!!
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since Leach rejected the current offer, here is what Myers should offer him:
1>guarantee 50% of remining contract if fired
2>Leach required to notify Mayers prior to contact with any other coaching position.
3>any personal apprearance, books stuff is Leach’s, but Leach promises to appear when requested by Tech.
4>if Leach left by choice during contract, $1,000,000 buyout.
the five year salary stays as offered.
Tech is protected without being petty and Leach keeps his pride.
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WE I’ll take that as a fair offer. GM & Leach now kiss and make up! ;-)
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Now, now don’t get your panties in a wad, it’s another colloquial expression.
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