Sadler gets two-year extension
digg it!
Facebook
del.icio.us
Seed Newsvine
Fark It
Reddit
BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
Nebraska men’s basketball coach Doc Sadler, as you might expect, was pleased with his contract extension of two years, and his $100,000 annual raise.
He seemed even more pleased with the source of his new deal — athletic director and former football coach Tom Osborne.
“It’s nice to know that somebody like him, who’s had the success that he’s had, thinks that we’re going in the right direction,” Sadler said. “Makes you feel good.”
Sadler, who recently completed his second season with Nebraska, on Wednesday signed a two-year contract extension that runs through June 30, 2014. It increases his annual salary from $700,000 to $800,000.
“I can’t tell you how much I appreciate what they did,” Sadler said, referring to Osborne and executive associate athletic director Marc Boehm.
Osborne first approached Sadler before the Big 12 Conference Tournament about possibly making changes to Sadler’s contract.
“He basically said he appreciates what we’re doing and thinks we’re going in the right direction,” Sadler said. “He wanted to do something, so they put something together.”
Sadler, out of town recruiting all but one day since Nebraska’s season ended last week in the National Invitation Tournament, didn’t see the final contract until Wednesday.
“I’m not a guy that takes very much time on that stuff,” Sadler said.
Even after the raise, Sadler’s salary ranks among the bottom third of Big 12 coaches. But new incentives in his updated contract give Sadler the opportunity to make more.
He earns an additional $100,000 if he leads Nebraska to the NCAA Tournament, and additional bonuses for each victory thereafter: $30,000 for a first-round win, $40,000 for a second-round win, $55,000 for making the Elite Eight, $75,000 for making the Final Four and $200,000 for winning the national championship.
Also, Sadler will be rewarded for good Academic Performance Ratings — bonuses range from $15,000 to $100,000.
For leading Nebraska to the NIT, Sadler received a bonus equal to 1/12th of his salary. The NIT bonus drops to 1/24th of his salary for future seasons.
“We think we’re very aggressive on the incentives,” Boehm said. “It’s very attainable to get to where some of the other (Big 12) coaches are.”
The only incentives in Sadler’s previous contract, besides for winning the national championship, were $100,000 for winning either the Big 12 Conference regular-season championship or Big 12 Tournament. Those still exist.
“We’re showing our faith in him that we want him to be here a long time,” Boehm said. “We’ve recognized what he’s done in a very short period. We want to tell him that we believe in him and he’s someone we want around for a long time.”
Sadler said the extension will help in recruiting efforts, perhaps as soon as this spring. The first day of the late signing period is April 16.
“For me to be able to sit here and tell people, ‘Look, I’m not going somewhere else, and I actually signed an extension here,’ that makes a big difference,” Sadler said. “Because there is a lot of movement right now, and you can eliminate some of that talk.”
Sadler also said family is a factor in his commitment to stay.
“I’ve got a 14-year-old that has moved a lot, and the last thing I want to do is pick him up and move again. And an 11-year-old, too,” he said.
“There’s guys making a lot less money than I’m making, there’s guys making a lot more. But it’s more about just peace of mind of where you’re at right now.”
The 47-year-old Sadler is 37-27 at Nebraska and 85-45 in four years at the Division I level. He’s the first coach in school history to win at least 17 games in each of his first two seasons.
Sadler led Nebraska to only the 12th 20-win season in program history this season. The Huskers were 20-13 and advanced to the second round of the NIT. Their 7-9 record in Big 12 play was good for a seventh-place finish; in the preseason, Nebraska was picked to finish 10th.
Osborne said in a statement: “Doc Sadler has done an exceptional job of motivating and preparing his basketball team this past season. We are very pleased that he has committed to staying at Nebraska for an extended period of time. We believe the future of Nebraska basketball is bright under Doc’s leadership.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
Most Commented news