A Self-less Act

Someone finally got it right. In the world of the College Coaching Carousel where coaches that have success are leaving school faster than the players, we finally see a guy do the right thing.

The Kansas Jayhawks won the national title in dramatic fashion Monday night, and before the press conference that night there were already rumors of Oklahoma State offering him a blank check and incentives to turn his alma-mater around.

Just an aside here, but is anyone else concerned about the coaching situation in Collegiate Sports? Is there a profession in the world where a man can sign a legal and binding contract to work for an organization for a certain length of time, and then bolt to a competing organization for more money before the termination of that contract? If there is such a job it is rare.

Today Bob Self chose to do it the right way. He went to the University and made his case. He showed them the facts and figures, and worked with them to come up with a solution that gave his current program the opportunity to retain his services.

It’s fair for him to ask for more money. For crying out loud he is no longer a national championship caliber coach, he is a national championship-winning coach. His measly 1.3 million dollar a year pay that won’t even reach 2 million dollars now that he met all of his incentives just won’t cut it in comparison with the bloated salaries of Roy Williams, Ben Howland and Memphis coach John Calipari.

In the end Bob Self signed a new contract with Kansas that undoubtedly came close to the offer at Oklahoma State. T. Boone Pickens the Oklahoma State’s wealthiest booster came in with a personal offer of paying the likes of 6 million dollars in a signing bonus, and around 6 years and 26 million dollars in salary.

The BottomLine sports fans Bob Self deserves a standing ovation for what he was able to do quietly in less than a week. He got his money, and he deserved it. He showed some loyalty to the school that gave him his break under Larry Brown, and gave him his “dream job” a short time ago. He sent a message to Jayhawks fans, his players and the nation by showing some integrity and showing them that he really wanted to stay put in Kansas. All this aside the one thing he did was think about his players, not only the current ones, but his recruits. He refused to be what everyone hates Rich Rodriquez for being. He refused to lie to them, he refused to bag out on what he started under contract and he refused to be the guy who sat in their living rooms and sold them on playing for him only to leave before they ever dribbled a basketball on his practice court.

Here’s to Bob Self; A man among men in collegiate coaching.