*Shaw is being rewarded for loyalty as perhaps he should be. No doubt there have been opportunities for him to go to the NFL but he has stayed at Stanford.

*Ditto for Whittingham the most tenured head coach in the Pac-12.

*Cristobal is not yet at that level of proven loyalty but at the same time he has a TON OF LEVERAGE as in the third head coach in 4-years and goodness knows Oregon, Mullens and the fan base do not want or need another head coaching change. If Cristobal had consecutive .500 or so seasons then is leverage would be minimized but going from 9-4 to 12-2, etc. plus his recruiting classes, he is the straw that stirs the drink so to speak.

*I see Oregon's situation like that of WSU and Alabama in different ways...at WSU it is hard to attract an elite coach AND keep him so it is worth the money to pay Leach who fields competitive and winning teams(but not championship teams). Alabama has an incredible history and it is far better to keep those traditions alive by paying Saban whatever it takes to keep him...because a strong head coach can keep a program viable even if quality assistants come and go(see WSU and Alabama and the latter with Mario Cristobal!)

*THE PRIORITY is to keep Cristobal. He has the history in playing at Miami and coaching at Alabama. He is recognized nationally as an one of the very best recruiters. After 2-years on the job and what he has done at Oregon with a lot of players he inherited vs recruited, is remarkable. Which again is why I think he HE has the leverage. He certainlyl deserves a higher salary base than 8th in the Pac-12. Minimum at 3.5 but I would be fine with 4. He will also negotiate for his assistants too...Oregon needs to figure out a way to make it happen.

Last edited by DucksReign (1/03/2020 1:55 pm)

MadDuck wrote:

oldretiredguy wrote:

Uncle Moron wrote:

Unfortunately it is likely Oregon will have to back up the Brinks truck to keep this staff together much longer. Interested parties will be coming after a lot of them.

I pretty much agree. The price of success. MC is the main guy: we do need to meet his needs, imo.

I’m a “program builder” myself. Not at MC’s level, but at my own level. Salary has never been my largest motivator. Do I have support? Do I like who I work with? Can I be successful here? Does my family like it here? Is my wife happy? Can I retain my staff? Those are bigger questions for me. And I would gladly forego personal salary to enable me to keep my staff happy and in place. If MC’s mindset is more like mine, and less like Urban’s, then I think he might be easier to retain than we suspect. We’re going to have to pay him, no doubt. I just think that’s not his primary motivator.

Yep, all those things do come into play, I have stayed in lower paying jobs because of a great work environment, but you have to believe some of our assistant coaches are looking for advancement.

Last edited by Uncle Moron (1/03/2020 2:16 pm)

A friend of mine sent me this info today...certainly bodes well for Cristobal as well. As I posted a few times on OLive...Cristobal is not only reinventing Oregon as a national brand, he is the ONLY head coach making the Pac-12 relevant nationally.

Most-Watched Pac-12 Football TV Games of 2019

1. Oregon vs Wisconsin, 16.3M
2. Oregon vs Auburn, 6.86M
3. Oregon vs Utah, 5.86M
4. Utah vs Texas, 5.61M
5. Oregon vs ASU, 4.09M
6. Oregon vs Washington, 3.62M
7. Colorado vs Nebraska, 3.45M
8. Oregon vs USC, 3.43M

oldretiredguy wrote:

Uncle Moron wrote:

Unfortunately it is likely Oregon will have to back up the Brinks truck to keep this staff together much longer. Interested parties will be coming after a lot of them.

I pretty much agree. The price of success. MC is the main guy: we do need to meet his needs, imo.

The best programs are often the most profitable, regardless of coaching costs. They tend to get the best TV deals, sell the most merchandise, the best sponsor contracts, sell the most tickets, etc. I'm really not too worried about paying the coaches, as long as the program's succeeding. What I AM worried about is getting past the cruddy PAC 12 deals.

EugeneDuck wrote:

After the great season and Rose Bowl win I expect the Ducks will sweeten MC's contract as a way to lock him in here.  Mario is currently the 8th highest paid coach in the PAC-12 at $2.6 million per year.  As a comparison, both Leach and Whittingham will make $4.0 million next year.  Shaw is hauling in $4.6 million at Stanford.  Chip is making $3.5 million and doing miserably at UCLA.  Helton makes $3.2 million and is lucky to be employed.  $2.6 million for Mario clearly does not cut it.

So what is fair for Mario?  Seems to me that $3.5 million would be the base.

oldretiredguy wrote:

Uncle Moron wrote:

Unfortunately it is likely Oregon will have to back up the Brinks truck to keep this staff together much longer. Interested parties will be coming after a lot of them.

I pretty much agree. The price of success. MC is the main guy: we do need to meet his needs, imo.

No different for Saban, Meyer, fisher or other highly respected HC's and staff. MC is the cornerstone and the rest of the staff will be fluid. Just the nature of the beast.