When the Division I-A Athletic Directors Association held its annual meeting in Grapevine, Texas, last month, there was considerable talk and much shared lament about the rising costs of running an athletic program, especially coaches’ salaries.
Yet, as soon as the members, including the University of Hawaii’s Jim Donovan, returned home, among the first things they did was reach deeper in their pockets to try to retain top coaches.
"We can all talk about the financial squeeze, but when we go back to our campuses everybody is looking for a competitive advantage, and keeping your best coaches is one of them," Donovan said.
With a three-year extension just signed by baseball coach Mike Trapasso, a record $345,000 offer on the table for men’s basketball coach Gib Arnold and an extension for football coach Greg McMackin now shoved deep to the back burner — if not off the stove altogether — UH is straining to balance being competitive while staying in the black on its athletic budget.
Salaries and benefits for the 129 full-time athletic department staffers, less than half of whom are coaches, take the biggest bite — about 40 percent — out of the $29 million operating budget, officials say.
UH has been up around 45 percent in the past, but leaving some staff positions unfilled has lowered the average.
The 50 full-time coaching positions cost UH approximately $4.8 million in base salary for 2010-11 and about $6.5 million overall, including bonuses and benefits. The biggest chunk is in the $2.03 million in salaries for its 10-man football coaching staff — McMackin and nine assistants — whose program brings in the most money, about $11.6 million including all sources, and has the highest visibility.
The department’s base salaries for coaches, which range from $1.03 million to $26,808 annually, average approximately $95,000 per coach. People with knowledge of finances in the eight-member Western Athletic Conference say they believe that places UH second behind Fresno State but will be more in the middle of the Mountain West Conference.
Salary ranges are set by the UH Board of Regents and the athletic director recommends what coaches will be paid, though regents can influence the process.
The bulk of UH salaries is underwritten by funds generated through ticket sales, media rights and sponsorships, though donations and limited state funds also play contributory roles.
"From our perspective, we have to balance two big issues: what our peers are paying and what we can afford to pay," Donovan said. "You also look at the success of the program historically and whether or not you believe you have a quote competitive advantage unquote in that sport. Some, such as volleyball, football, baseball, softball … we believe we do. That is our reality and we have to choose our battles."
For example, Donovan said, "We expect to be among the top 10 in the country in paying our Wahine volleyball coach because we expect our program to be at a high level. Some others we may be around the average of our conference peers."
Dave Shoji, whose Rainbow Wahine volleyball teams have won four national championships, has a salary listed at $179,328. The school is well aware it will likely continue to shell out at a high level when it comes time to hire his eventual successor if it expects to be a top-10 program year in and year out.
Increasingly, UH has sought to supplement salaries with booster funds and tie more of the money to incentives. Former football coach June Jones’ then-$800,000 salary was about 40 percent underwritten by contributions, and Trapasso’s former $175,008 package included $40,008 in assisted funds. UH is expected to get 15-20 percent of Arnold’s salary from contributions.
People familiar with the process say UH would like to lower the guarantee on the salary it offers for head football coach from the contracted $1.1 million to something more affordable along the lines of $600,000-$700,000 with incentives that would kick in if ticket sales, bowl and championship targets are met.
