Aggies are keeping Jans for now, if not forever
AD Moccia will rework deal for coach who has gone 83-17
Some uneasy days in Aggieland are over. Chris Jans, the record-setting third year head coach of the New Mexico State basketball program who was in the running for a job at East Tennessee State University, renewed his vows with the Aggies on Wednesday night and again on Thursday, assuring the fan base he and his wife, Sheri, have no intention of going anywhere right now.
“At the end of the day, all I know is I woke up this morning feeling wonderful — feeling as good as I’ve felt in a long, long time,” Jans said Thursday in a video conference call with media from around New Mexico and El Paso. “It felt great knowing this is our home. This is where we’re going to be.”
But, unlike the usual coach-speak in such scenarios of denying he was ever interested in or listened to what another program was offering (in this case he was in talks with East Tennessee State University), Jans was rather transparent about the reality of the unique situation of his being courted by a program that just last week lost one of Jans’ best friends, Steve Forbes, who is now the head coach at Wake Forest.
“I’ve learned in this business that if people have an interest (in hiring you),” Jans said, “the least you can do for yourself, your career, your family is to listen. That doesn’t mean you’re going to make the jump, but I think it makes business sense to listen to what people have to say.”
The business reality at NMSU is there is a finite amount of money available to offer a coach, even one who has gone 83-17 in his first three seasons with a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and a likely third this past March had COVID-19 not brought a stop to the college basketball season. (NMSU was a heavy betting favorite to win the WAC tournament before it was canceled.)
Jans this past season made $506,000 ($290,000
base salary and a $216,000 donor-based retention bonus paid on Nov. 1). That was before bonuses and contractual incentives may have meant another $100,000 (full details on the bonuses met and incentives earned haven’t been confirmed) for him.
NMSU athletic director Mario Moccia, who has for years tried to squeeze as much out of his bosses to help retain coaches, said Thursday that there is an new agreement in place between himself and Jans that is a “three-pronged” deal. That agreement, of which specific details have not yet been finalized, involves “creativity within the budget, but no new money.”
Moccia added there will be an extension of some sort on the length of Jans’ deal, additional compensation through the donor-driven retention component of the contract and also some work on some new incentives that could lead to more pay.
For his part, Jans wasn’t shy about showing his appreciation for the continued effort of Moccia.
“There are a lot of factors. Certainly Mario Moccia is one of the biggest factors,” Jans said. “If I could work for him for the rest of my life, that would be my druthers.”
Moccia, who has in the past four years done two coaching searches, said he was happy he isn’t doing another one. At least not for now.
“At New Mexico State,” Moccia said, “in the sport of men’s basketball, you better have a short list and keep it updated, especially when your coach wins 28 games, 30 games, (NMSU won 25 games this past season without postseason games) and all this other stuff. …
“While I want to keep coach Jans (at NMSU) as long as humanly possible, I’m also a realist and realize that a Power 5 school, in my opinion, is going to come calling much sooner than later, and that’s when you get into the next phase of trying to be prepared when the inevitable comes.”