MORGANTOWN — According to an amended contract released by WVU on Thursday through a freedom of information request, if Bob Huggins is not retained as the Mountaineers’ men’s basketball coach for the 2024-25 season — or any season that follows — he will not be paid any type of buyout by the school.
Huggins signed the amended deal, which makes changes to the extension he signed in 2021, on Tuesday. The amendment comes after Huggins used an anti-gay slur while appearing on a Cincinnati radio show on Monday.
In the 2021 extension, Huggins was essentially signed through June 30, 2027. If the school decided to fire Huggins without cause prior to that date, he would have earned half of his remaining salary as a buyout.
Under the amendment, Huggins is now employed at WVU on a year-to-year basis — ending each year on April 30 — so there are no remaining years to calculate as some type of buyout.
Huggins — in a case he would be let go — would still be owed a supplemental compensation of $1.25 million, but that is money Huggins has had withheld from previous paychecks, essentially a sort of retirement account.
The amended contract states Huggins will take a $1 million pay cut — down to $3.15 million next season — which was outlined in the university’s statement on Wednesday, to remain as head coach for the 2023-24 season.
Each season that follows, the “university” shall determine if Huggins will remain as the head coach, as well as set the financial terms (Huggins’ salary) for that particular season.
In a technical sense, the school could raise Huggins’ salary back to the original $4.15 million for the 2024-25 season, keep it at $3.15 million or somewhere in between if Huggins is retained for a second year.
It is not clear who exactly “university” is in that instance, meaning it could be the school’s president, board of governors or the athletic director, or some type of combination.
No changes were made to Huggins’ incentives package, which includes things such as earning $20,000 for getting the Mountaineers into the NCAA tournament or $40,000 for winning the regular-season Big 12 championship, among others.
Huggins is entering his 17th season at WVU. He is the active winningest men’s Division I basketball coach with 935 victories and he was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2022.
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