Jimbo’s giant buyout sets a bad precedent

It was already broken but when Texas A&M decided to pay Jimbo Fisher $77 million to not coach the Aggies, the college sports business model was shattered.

It doesn’t matter that the Aggies are loaded with West Texas oil barons, paying a guy whose team was in fourth place in the SEC West and probably going to finish 7-5 overall and 4-4 in SEC play that kind of money is beyond ridiculous.

If being mediocre isn’t cause for firing a head coach then the folks agreeing to these outrageous buyouts need to move over and let someone else do the negotiating.

By the time this A&M firing is finished it may have cost it more like $100 million because the assistants have guaranteed contracts too.

There are only a few schools who could even consider spending that much money to get a once proud program out of the middle of the pack.

The University of Arkansas, a land-grant college, can’t really afford to buy out Sam Pittman even if it wanted to because in addition to his $18 million there’s another $12 million for assistants contracts.

Mississippi State fired Zach Arnett on Monday morning but his buyout is a measly $4 million, or for most people life-changing money.

Yes, Arnett and Fisher’s last game in the SEC was against each other and the Aggies won 51-10.

Arnett and Pittman brought in offensive coordinators who changed the offense for quarterbacks who had at least three years of experience and practice in a different offense.

Pittman got rid of his problem; the Bulldogs got rid of Arnett.

There are disappointed and frustrated fans at MSU and Arkansas, but the A&M boosters were outraged and it was probably fueled some by the fact that arch rival Texas joins the SEC next year and will probably be a permanent opponent. A Texas that is finally improving and actually beat Alabama this season, something Fisher did once in his almost six seasons at A&M.

The Razorbacks face a monumental chore if they decide to make a change.

Every coach since Frank Broyles, who resigned to be a full-time athletic director in 1976, has been fired or forced out except John L. Smith, who was hired as an interim for a season.

When Pittman was hired only three others were truly interested, Deion Sanders, who had no college experience at the time, Tulane’s Willie Fritz and Lane Kiffin, who eventually took the Ole Miss job for a little more money.

If the powers decided to get rid of Pittman they would be competing with A&M, MSU and who knows who else in finding a new coach.

The bet here is Pittman is safe, at least for another season, but a loss to Florida International this Saturday and that could change. And if that same Razorback team that showed up last Saturday or for Mississippi State takes the field the fans are going to be more than upset.

The first round of boos last Saturday came with 10:28 to play in the first quarter. That’s the earliest in this scribe’s career.

If the Hogs win Pittman gets to go whole hog into the transfer portal, find some players and hopefully one of them would be the type of leader linebacker Grant Morgan was in 2021 when the Razorbacks went 9-4.

As for the Aggies and the checks they have to write, starting with $19.4 million within 60 days, $7.27 million within the next 60 days and $7.27 million every year from 2025 until 2031, they have set a bad precedent.

Apparently they can afford it, but most schools can’t and won’t. They tried to buy a national championship by hiring Fisher, but all they did was make a guy oil rich without getting his hands dirty.