Buyout stalling McElwain and Florida Gators

Operation find a new coach has stalled as Jeremy Foley and his UAA contingent returned from Fort. Collins, Colorado without a new head coach for the Florida Gators.

Foley and a group of University Athletic Association flew from Jacksonville to Colorado to meet with current Colorado State head coach Jim McElwain after speaking with the coach on the phone the previous day. The flight was presumed to be to hash out a few minor details and that Florida would soon have Will Muschamp’s replacement.

However, Edgar Thompson of the Orlando Sentinel was the first to report — and sources have told Gator Country — that the $7.5 million dollar buyout that McElwain has attached to his contract are holding up negotiations.

The UAA released a statement today on Twitter saying, “We’ve had very productive conversations with Coach McElwain and his wife Karen and those continue.”

It leaves Florida in an awkward predicament.

It makes sense for Colorado State to play hardball. The Rams are trying to build a new stadium and with it tradition and a program. They hired McElwain to be the face of that change, to lead the program in a new direction and into a new era. They rewarded him — a coach with no head coaching experience with a five-year contract attached with five years of potential extensions. In total, the contract’s worth could have been for approximately $15 million over the course of 10 years.

To protect themselves, and to try to stop their new head coach from using them as a stepping-stone to get a more lucrative offer, they added a huge buyout to the contract. A contract that McElwain signed knowingly.

Foley likely planned on flying out of Jacksonville unnoticed. He most likely wanted to meet with McElwain without being tailed by local Fort Collins reporters and figured that this whole trip would go under the radar.

Instead, Foley was met by reporters at the Gainesville Regional airport upon his arrival back home. He briefly met with a few reporters after his plane landed on Wednesday night but stressed that there was nothing else to report other than what they previous statement had said.

Pat Dooley of the Gainesville Sun reported on Wednesday night that two things wouldn’t happen. 1) Florida will not pay the full buyout and 2) Florida would not use playing a game in Colorado as a potential barging chip.

So here we sit. Colorado State has a head coach who was all but ready to pack his bags and ship off to Gainesville. If a deal is not struck, how does McElwain go back to his players and back to the school when they all know he was ready to use them as the stepping-stone that the university feared and tried to protect themselves against?

If a deal is not struck, where do Foley and the Gators go next? How do you enter into a new negotiation with a coach after publically whiffing on one before?

In a show of force, Foley and a close group of UAA officials took a leap and made a move after their top-target. Their first parachute didn’t deploy.

Here’s hoping they packed a spare.

Nick de la Torre
A South Florida native, Nick developed a passion for all things sports at a very young age. His love for baseball was solidified when he saw Al Leiter’s no-hitter for the Marlins live in May of 1996. He was able to play baseball in college but quickly realized there isn’t much of a market for short, slow outfielders that hit around the Mendoza line. Wanting to continue with sports in some capacity he studied journalism at the University of Central Florida. Nick got his first start in the business as an intern for a website covering all things related to the NFL draft before spending two seasons covering the Florida football team at Bleacher Report. That job led him to GatorCountry. When he isn’t covering Gator sports, Nick enjoys hitting way too many shots on the golf course, attempting to keep up with his favorite t.v. shows and watching the Heat, Dolphins and Marlins. Follow him on twitter @NickdelatorreGC

8 COMMENTS

  1. It’s an embarrassing moment for UF. Even the average fan knew about the buyout and Foley looks stupid for going out to offer a job to someone and then fail to seal the deal because of something he knew about before he ever left Gainesville. The negotiation of the buyout should have taken place before ever getting on a plane. Why go offer a job if you’re not going to pay the price that was known by everyone? Who knows if McElwain was the first choice, but at least it could have been said that UF got their first choice. Now everyone knows that whoever is hired was not at the top of the list. Maybe it’s time to put Foley out to pasture. This is an egregious error that makes UF look like a mickey mouse operation. You know the media is going to have field day with the, now, ongoing drama of the coaching search. It could have all been easily avoided by Foley doing something as basic as doing his homework before traipsing off in a plane. Is 7.5 million dollars worth the negative publicity?

    • Once again, Nole print. No one gives a rat’s a$$ what your little, feeble mind thinks. Go back to Whorechant.

      What is embarrassing is Winston, Jimbo Fisher and F$U.

      No control! One is too stupid to realize what a damna$$ he is and thinks he can do anything without taking responsibility for his actions. The other two, overlooks things which is the way it seems to do business up North in Tally.

      Go Away!

      Please continue pursuing your degree being a clown at F$U. You are a natural and should have a PhD in being a Bozo clown, The “King” of clowns, from your lame posts.

  2. It’s like a spouse leaving for someone else and having to come back. Colorado State’s not sitting in the cat bird seat. They’ve got a coach that would rather not be their coach and probably players who wish they were someplace else. Recruits thinking what was I thinking. Don’t think 10 win seasons. Oh, and Co. State won’t be getting the first penny of their seven mill buyout. But, they got a coach who doesn’t want to be there coach.

    • CSU is not the one looking stupid now. The minute Foley arrived in Colorado he lost any leverage and now has made UF and himself look like fools for not paying the price that was known to everyone to get McElwain. UF looks cheap and stupid. Along with the football team being bad on the field, which is why UF is seeking a new coach, now UF looks to be the home of a bunch of yahoos that royally screw up something as simple as hiring a new coach. You can spin it how ever you want, but UF is looking incompetent on and off the field. As with FSU, which is perceived wrongly, the perception of UF being run by idiots is only enhanced by this total screw up.

  3. Mr de la Torre , let me ask you this question, who would you think GATOR NATION would rather have JIm M or CHARLIE STRONG ??? honest opinion and I hope you respond ===now has JF contacted Charlie Strong yes or no ?? what do you think ??? and will coach Strong accept if offered ???

    I WOULD LIKE TO SEE WHAT YOU WRITERS WHO ARE SUPPOSE TO KNOW HAVE TO SAY .

  4. Foley showed great leadership by leaving yesterday. He knew, based on the media following his every move, that coming back without a coach would churn the rumor mill. He made an offer and now it is up to Mac to figure it out. And I do not blame CSU for playing hardball. That is why we sign contracts.
    If Mac wants this Florida job then he needs to go get it. Not in CSU’s best interest to force a coach to remain somewhere he does not want to be so, UF and Mac have some leverage. This will be resolved today or Foley moves on. All will be forgotten once we have a new coach. Anyone taking issue with how Foley is managing this situation has obviously never been involved in a high stakes negotiation. Especially one so public. This is not easy.

    • Well, I’ve been involved in high stakes negotiating and this was not a good approach by Foley. The guy has a buyout at a certain dollar. What makes Foley think he can march in and change the minds of the University leaders who by the way have a fiduciary duty to CSU to make the right fiscal choices on it’s behalf. They would be complete idiots not to force UF’s hand to pay the full amount, along with being seen as breaching their duties to the University of performance. I’m shocked Foley took off out there with the intent of asking for relief on the buyout. On what grounds?! H