Hopefully This Will Help!

The University of West Virginia settled their lawsuit with Rich Rodriguez and the University of Michigan earlier today. West Virginia had filed suit against Rodriguez and the University of Michigan in an attempt to collect on Rodriguez's $4M buyout clause with the University. Rodriguez broke his contract and left the Mountaineers this past December. Under the terms of the settlement, Rodriguez will pay $1.5M in three annual payments beginning in January, 2010. The University of Michigan will pay the remaining $2.5M of the buyout.

In my opinion, this type of contract enforcement is long overdue. Coaches should be held accountable to the Universities, and more importantly to the athletes that they recruit. The vast majority of major college athletes decide on a school, not for the academic institution, but based solely on the coach. If the athlete doesn't receive the playing time that he was promised, if he doesn't get along with the coaching staff, or if he wants to be closer to home; whatever the reason, if that student athlete decides to leave school he is required to sit out a year. But the coach that the student athlete came halfway across the country to play for can leave a job on Friday and start the next job the following Monday. Why should a student athlete be punished and the coach not? Until now, a coaches contract has not been worth the ink on the paper it is written. The coaches have not had to pay any sort of price for welshing on their contract. Hopefully this will make coaches thing twice before jumping ship.