SPRINGFIELD -- In steps to solidify the Bears basketball coaching staff for the future, the Missouri State University Board of Governors, on Friday (June 18), extended the contract of men's basketball head coach Cuonzo Martin and boosted the salaries of his assistant coaches.
"By investing in our basketball program and doing everything in our power to retain our quality coaching staff, our most profitable programs now have the personnel in place to be successful well into the future," said Kyle Moats, Missouri State Director of Athletics. "As we deal with the difficult budget situation, we not only have to focus on the expense side, we also have to enhance our revenues. We believe solidifying our men's basketball staff is one of the best ways to increase our long-term revenues."
The Missouri State Board of Governors approved Martin's guaranteed five-year contract extension through April 1, 2015. Under the terms of the extension, Martin's base salary remains at $140,000. Martin's total compensation package is estimated to be $300,000 annually, including income from television and radio shows and promotional compensation provided by the University from funds received from the Missouri State Foundation. Martin also is eligible for achievement payments based on team performance.
Under the terms of the extension, if Missouri State cancels Martin's contract without cause, it is responsible for compensating him with a monthly base pay times the number of months remaining on the contract. Likewise, should Martin cancel the contract to take another head coaching position, he will pay the University a cancellation fee, based on the number of years remaining on the agreement. The cancellation fee, which is a significant change in Martin's contract, is $250,000 for the first year and decreases annually by $50,000. The cancellation clause is a significant change to the new contract.
A native of East St. Louis, Ill., Martin guided the Bears to the fifth-best turnaround in college basketball this season. He originally signed a five-year contract with Missouri State -- through the 2012-13 season -- when he officially became the program's 16th head coach on April 1, 2008. The new two-year extension comes on the heels of a 24-12 campaign in which Bears won the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament and tied Kansas for the national lead in home victories.
The team's transformation from an 11-20 record a year ago and resurgence to the national spotlight helped make the decision to secure Martin and his staff an easy one, according to Moats.
"Cuonzo and his family have been great additions to the community, the University and certainly to the program," said Moats. "Under his leadership, we feel our basketball program is in good hands and on the right track. The opportunity to invest in the success of men's basketball at Missouri State is something from which all of our programs will benefit and something about which our fans should be very excited."
Martin stated that the new contract and confidence shown him by the University is greatly appreciated.
"I am honored to call Missouri State home, and I look forward to continuing progress toward our goal of building a championship-caliber program," Martin said. "We want to build a program that is successful on and off the court, and I want to thank our fans for their continued support of our team. I hope we can count on that support in the future and expand our fan base even more as we move forward."
Martin expressed special gratitude for the confidence in his assistants.
"To me, it was more important to look at ways to get our assistants on the same level, especially in light of the interest other schools have shown in them," said Martin. "I am thankful that we were able to find a way to make that happen and make that investment."
The additional pool of $18,500 was made possible by an internal reallocation of the Intercollegiate Athletics budget, according to Moats. The pool will be used to enhance the salaries of all three assistant coaches and make them consistent with each other. Assistants Jon Harris and Steve Woodberry will receive increases of $1,000 each, bringing both salaries to $70,116. Fellow assistant coach Kent Williams will receive an increase of $15,000 to bring his annual total to $60,954. Director of basketball operations Trevyor Fisher received a $1,500 increase to raise his salary to $28,616. Fisher and the assistant coaches are also eligible for achievement payments.
The men's basketball coaching contract changes were approved by the Board of Governors during its executive session Friday. Those changes were part of the Board's annual evaluation of salaries and benefits for athletics coaches and staff. The Missouri Open Meetings and Records Law (known as the Sunshine Law), provides public governmental bodies 72 hours in which to announce personnel decisions taken in executive session.
"By investing in our basketball program and doing everything in our power to retain our quality coaching staff, our most profitable programs now have the personnel in place to be successful well into the future," said Kyle Moats, Missouri State Director of Athletics. "As we deal with the difficult budget situation, we not only have to focus on the expense side, we also have to enhance our revenues. We believe solidifying our men's basketball staff is one of the best ways to increase our long-term revenues."
The Missouri State Board of Governors approved Martin's guaranteed five-year contract extension through April 1, 2015. Under the terms of the extension, Martin's base salary remains at $140,000. Martin's total compensation package is estimated to be $300,000 annually, including income from television and radio shows and promotional compensation provided by the University from funds received from the Missouri State Foundation. Martin also is eligible for achievement payments based on team performance.
Under the terms of the extension, if Missouri State cancels Martin's contract without cause, it is responsible for compensating him with a monthly base pay times the number of months remaining on the contract. Likewise, should Martin cancel the contract to take another head coaching position, he will pay the University a cancellation fee, based on the number of years remaining on the agreement. The cancellation fee, which is a significant change in Martin's contract, is $250,000 for the first year and decreases annually by $50,000. The cancellation clause is a significant change to the new contract.
A native of East St. Louis, Ill., Martin guided the Bears to the fifth-best turnaround in college basketball this season. He originally signed a five-year contract with Missouri State -- through the 2012-13 season -- when he officially became the program's 16th head coach on April 1, 2008. The new two-year extension comes on the heels of a 24-12 campaign in which Bears won the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament and tied Kansas for the national lead in home victories.
The team's transformation from an 11-20 record a year ago and resurgence to the national spotlight helped make the decision to secure Martin and his staff an easy one, according to Moats.
"Cuonzo and his family have been great additions to the community, the University and certainly to the program," said Moats. "Under his leadership, we feel our basketball program is in good hands and on the right track. The opportunity to invest in the success of men's basketball at Missouri State is something from which all of our programs will benefit and something about which our fans should be very excited."
Martin stated that the new contract and confidence shown him by the University is greatly appreciated.
"I am honored to call Missouri State home, and I look forward to continuing progress toward our goal of building a championship-caliber program," Martin said. "We want to build a program that is successful on and off the court, and I want to thank our fans for their continued support of our team. I hope we can count on that support in the future and expand our fan base even more as we move forward."
Martin expressed special gratitude for the confidence in his assistants.
"To me, it was more important to look at ways to get our assistants on the same level, especially in light of the interest other schools have shown in them," said Martin. "I am thankful that we were able to find a way to make that happen and make that investment."
The additional pool of $18,500 was made possible by an internal reallocation of the Intercollegiate Athletics budget, according to Moats. The pool will be used to enhance the salaries of all three assistant coaches and make them consistent with each other. Assistants Jon Harris and Steve Woodberry will receive increases of $1,000 each, bringing both salaries to $70,116. Fellow assistant coach Kent Williams will receive an increase of $15,000 to bring his annual total to $60,954. Director of basketball operations Trevyor Fisher received a $1,500 increase to raise his salary to $28,616. Fisher and the assistant coaches are also eligible for achievement payments.
The men's basketball coaching contract changes were approved by the Board of Governors during its executive session Friday. Those changes were part of the Board's annual evaluation of salaries and benefits for athletics coaches and staff. The Missouri Open Meetings and Records Law (known as the Sunshine Law), provides public governmental bodies 72 hours in which to announce personnel decisions taken in executive session.
