Tom Dienhart wonders what the hell Texas Tech is thinking in deciding to wait to extend Captain Leach and on some level I agree with him, but on the other hand I understand the economics the situation. Dienhart wonders why Leach and the Texas Tech fanbase should pay the price for bad administrative decisions:
A major reason Tech finds its budget squeezed is because it still is paying four coaches – a women's basketball coach, a men's basketball coach, a baseball coach and a defensive coordinator – who no longer are at the university. Want more? Tech also is paying the women's basketball and the men's basketball coaches' secretaries.How is this Leach's fault? Why should he suffer and be made to wait because of bad decisions by the Tech administration? Maybe Tech wouldn't be so pressed for money if Myers was a more aggressive fund-raiser.
Of course Dienhart doesn't take into account the fact that I'm pretty sure that Bob Knight raise enough funds to take care of all of the men's scholarships for quite some time and Larry Hays will also raise more money than he's paid for years to come. Of course, that still leaves a women's basketball coach and a defensive coordinator on the payroll. I can't speak to the women's basketball coach, but I would imagine that Leach is the one that told Setencich he couldn't coach any more, and that shouldn't be on Myers in the very least.
You'll note by looking at the IndyStar's NCAA budget database that the Texas Tech football and men's basketball programs are quite sufficient (Texas Tech's expense statement and revenue statement), but the difference between Texas Tech and Texas is that a good year for Texas Tech is making $1,000,000 while Texas makes $39,000,000 (go ahead and compare the two schools to get a feel for the difference in revenue). The economics of the two schools are completely different
Certainly Leach deserves to be compensated, but coaches and athletes have it pretty good. I wonder how many people have their contracts re-negotiated when there are still two years left on them? I know, we see it every year, coaches and players get extended all of the time, it's a part of business. It sucks that he can't get extended and that he can't get paid, I'd love to keep him around for a long time, but it's not hurting recruiting.
Leach will get paid and although he's had a wandering eye, I think he knows that Lubbock is where he needs to be.