Sports Capitalism 101
posted by Scott Hood on Friday, January 25, 2008
I know many USC fans are upset at Brian VanGorder for abandoning the defensive coordinator post at USC after three weeks and taking a similar job with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons.
Well, it’s similar in every aspect except one - his paycheck.
VanGorder should more than double the salary he was set to earn at USC. How about $1 million per year? That’s the going rate for a coordinator’s position in the NFL right now.
Even Steve Spurrier acknowledged VanGorder made the right decision for he and his family.
Do I blame VanGorder? Absolutely not. I would have done the same thing.
He told us after the introductory press conference on Jan. 8 that his dream was to become a NFL defensive coordinator. Well, he finally gets to live it out.
How many of us in this big, bad world get paid seven figures annually AND get to work at a dream job? Not many. There are only 32 NFL defensive coordinator jobs out there and VanGorder has one of them.
In a sense, he’s reached the top of the mountain in his profession.
Heck, Jason Garrett of the Dallas Cowboys gave up his quest to become a NFL head coach when Jerry Jones sweetened his pot to $3 million annually.
Here are the questions many Gamecock fans were asking today – What about loyalty? What about honor? What about keeping your promises?
Don’t make me laugh. Please.
That ship sailed a long time ago. And it’s not coming back. In fact, it might have already shipwrecked.
There’s little loyalty left in pro and major Division I athletics. Coaches and players come and go. Some coaches are always seeking the next big job, the next big paycheck.
Remember, Ellis Johnson just did the same thing to Arkansas that VanGorder did to USC. Now it’s Arkansas that’s left holding the short straw.
Did Johnson feel any special affinity for Arkansas because it allowed him to finally leave Starkville? No.
Of course, few are crying for new Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino, who ditched the Falcons after 13 games and showed up less than 24 hours later in Fayetteville in a late night press conference as the new head coach of the Razorbacks.
But Petrino will now go out and steal somebody else’s defensive coordinator. The process will continue on until every job is filled and everyone is content with who they have.
Is all of this stuff bizarre? Absolutely.
Does it make any sense? Yes, as long as you understand its dollars and cents – not dollars and sense – driving the gravy train.
When it comes to this type of stuff, there’s a disconnect between coaches and fans. The fans, not surprisingly, take things personally and demand that coaches pledge their everlasting allegiance to their school.
Coaches, on the other hand, see each job as a business opportunity. It’s called Sports Capitalism 101.
One of the best examples I can think of is Rick Stockstill. How many of you thought when he was happily employed by Clemson in the 1990’s that he would one day end up working for the Gamecocks? Not many, I’m sure.
I vividly recall a group of us talking to Stockstill during the 2005 season and someone asked me if he felt funny working at USC after all those years at Clemson.
His response was emphatic: No, coaching is a business. This is my job, and I try to do it well no matter where I am.
That’s the way it works in coaching sometimes. One day a coach is working for the arch-rival, the next day he’s wearing the hat of your favorite school.
You just never know.
I’m happy for Ellis Johnson and his family because they get the opportunity to finally come home to South Carolina. I know he really wanted the defensive coordinator job six weeks ago when Spurrier started his search.
He finished a close second in that race to VanGorder. But, like the tortoise and the hare, patience won out.
Of course, Johnson will get a healthy raise out of the deal. That’s the way it always works.
In effect, college football assistant coaches are all independent contractors. They work for themselves as much as they work for their schools.
So here’s my cheap advice when it comes to assistant coaches – never expect they’re going to stick around, so when they do leave, it won’t be upsetting or painful.
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The bizarre events of Thursday reminded us once again that major college athletics is, like pro sports, a big business.
I know many USC fans are upset at Brian VanGorder for abandoning the defensive coordinator post at USC after three weeks and taking a similar job with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons.
Well, it’s similar in every aspect except one - his paycheck.
VanGorder should more than double the salary he was set to earn at USC. How about $1 million per year? That’s the going rate for a coordinator’s position in the NFL right now.
Even Steve Spurrier acknowledged VanGorder made the right decision for he and his family.
Do I blame VanGorder? Absolutely not. I would have done the same thing.
He told us after the introductory press conference on Jan. 8 that his dream was to become a NFL defensive coordinator. Well, he finally gets to live it out.
How many of us in this big, bad world get paid seven figures annually AND get to work at a dream job? Not many. There are only 32 NFL defensive coordinator jobs out there and VanGorder has one of them.
In a sense, he’s reached the top of the mountain in his profession.
Heck, Jason Garrett of the Dallas Cowboys gave up his quest to become a NFL head coach when Jerry Jones sweetened his pot to $3 million annually.
Here are the questions many Gamecock fans were asking today – What about loyalty? What about honor? What about keeping your promises?
Don’t make me laugh. Please.
That ship sailed a long time ago. And it’s not coming back. In fact, it might have already shipwrecked.
There’s little loyalty left in pro and major Division I athletics. Coaches and players come and go. Some coaches are always seeking the next big job, the next big paycheck.
Remember, Ellis Johnson just did the same thing to Arkansas that VanGorder did to USC. Now it’s Arkansas that’s left holding the short straw.
Did Johnson feel any special affinity for Arkansas because it allowed him to finally leave Starkville? No.
Of course, few are crying for new Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino, who ditched the Falcons after 13 games and showed up less than 24 hours later in Fayetteville in a late night press conference as the new head coach of the Razorbacks.
But Petrino will now go out and steal somebody else’s defensive coordinator. The process will continue on until every job is filled and everyone is content with who they have.
Is all of this stuff bizarre? Absolutely.
Does it make any sense? Yes, as long as you understand its dollars and cents – not dollars and sense – driving the gravy train.
When it comes to this type of stuff, there’s a disconnect between coaches and fans. The fans, not surprisingly, take things personally and demand that coaches pledge their everlasting allegiance to their school.
Coaches, on the other hand, see each job as a business opportunity. It’s called Sports Capitalism 101.
One of the best examples I can think of is Rick Stockstill. How many of you thought when he was happily employed by Clemson in the 1990’s that he would one day end up working for the Gamecocks? Not many, I’m sure.
I vividly recall a group of us talking to Stockstill during the 2005 season and someone asked me if he felt funny working at USC after all those years at Clemson.
His response was emphatic: No, coaching is a business. This is my job, and I try to do it well no matter where I am.
That’s the way it works in coaching sometimes. One day a coach is working for the arch-rival, the next day he’s wearing the hat of your favorite school.
You just never know.
I’m happy for Ellis Johnson and his family because they get the opportunity to finally come home to South Carolina. I know he really wanted the defensive coordinator job six weeks ago when Spurrier started his search.
He finished a close second in that race to VanGorder. But, like the tortoise and the hare, patience won out.
Of course, Johnson will get a healthy raise out of the deal. That’s the way it always works.
In effect, college football assistant coaches are all independent contractors. They work for themselves as much as they work for their schools.
So here’s my cheap advice when it comes to assistant coaches – never expect they’re going to stick around, so when they do leave, it won’t be upsetting or painful.
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Scott Hood. Since February of 2005, Scott has covered the South Carolina football, men's basketball and baseball programs for GamecockCentral. He may be reached by email at scottblog(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.