New bill gives state schools better chance to keep coaches

boulder» Now that the Colorado athletic department knows it has the luxury of offering more contracts to coaches, the work is underway to figure out how to use those contracts.

Last month, Governor John Hickenlooper signed Senate bill 17-041, which will allow more contracts for those in the athletic department. For years, the Buffs have been hamstrung by state legislation that limited state schools to just six contracts per campus.

CU has been using all six in athletics, but no longer operating with that restriction gives the Buffs better opportunities to hire and retain quality coaches.

“It is a game changer for us,” CU football coach Mike MacIntyre said. “It was a big problem when I first got here.”

With athletic director Rick George, MacIntyre, men’s basketball coach Tad Boyle, women’s basketball coach JR Payne and volleyball

Ecoach Jesse Mahoney having contracts, MacIntyre has been able to offer just one of his nine assistants the security of a contract.

Currently, defensive coordinator DJ Eliot is the

Eonly football assistant with a contract, signing a threeyear deal worth $700,000 annually when he was hired in February.

Other coaches at CU are at-will employees with no long-term job security.