Fair or Not, New UA Coach Could Determine AD?s Fate (Opinion)

A close, connected University of Arkansas basketball booster wondered on the opening day of the Southeastern Conference tournament whether John Pelphrey would survive as coach.

“I just wonder if letting him go is fair,” he said.

Three days later, Pelphrey was fired. Fair or not, that’s the cold, hard truth.

The booster tended to think Pelphrey had earned another year based on Arkansas’ incoming recruiting class. He also understands the reality all of the empty seats at Walton Arena this season represented.

In the days that followed Pelphrey’s dismissal, those arguments and plenty more were volleyed back and forth between his supporters and detractors. It was an emotionally raw time for both camps.

Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long, meanwhile, went about the business of finding a new coach. It is not an easy chore.

It is not easy because Long must walk both sides of the fence. While he must take emotion out of his decision-making process and make a good business and basketball decision, he also must make a hire that excites the fan base.

In other words, Long is like a chef of sorts. Surrounded by equal parts basketball, business and emotion, he is the one who has to settle on the right recipe.

Yes, fans eventually will come back if the new coach wins and wins big. In the meantime, though, Long desperately needs to ignite the passion of people willing to part with their money in order to watch Arkansas basketball.

Former Arkansas assistant and current Missouri coach Mike Anderson would do that. Based on his association with the Razorbacks’ glory days and his preferred style of play, it’s hard to believe hiring Anderson wouldn’t result in a spike in ticket sales.

The question is, at what cost? Bringing Anderson back to Fayetteville could reasonably cost up to $2 million per year based on his current deal at Missouri.

Multiply that over a five-year deal, and you get a price tag in the $10 million neighborhood. That’s a lot of money for a department already asking for money in every conceivable way short of sending cheerleaders door-to-door with boxes of cookies.

An alternative would be to go after a lesser-known coach at a lower price. Again, though, this comes with risk.

Say Arkansas offers a coach like Billy Gillispie a relatively low-ball $750,000 annually over four years. That adds up to less than two seasons worth of a coach like Anderson.

The question is whether a coach like Gillispie would rejuvenate the fan base enough to buy tickets, or simply result in a wait-and-see approach. There’s also the fact even a coach like Gillispie might not be available — see Texas Tech — for such a price in today’s watered-down world of college basketball.

Forbes.com recently featured an article examining that world. It wondered if seven figures is too much for a college basketball coach, or just the cost of doing business.

Kentucky, for example, made John Calipari the highest-paid coach in the land despite the fact he’s never won a national championship. Heck, he couldn’t even beat Arkansas this year.

Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, conversely, could be construed as a baragain at $2.2 million per season. He owns, after all, four national titles and four second-place finishes.

Frankly, it’s been more than 10 years since Arkansas was mentioned in the same breath as programs like Kentucky and Duke. Now it’s time for Long to change that.

He’ll do that, presumably, by deciding which coach can bring the most bang for the buck. It’s not an easy task, but Long is paid handsomely — $450,000 annually, plus bonuses — for his troubles.

Who ultimately is announced as Arkansas’ next basketball coach could have a major impact on Long’s own future here. That’s another cold, hard truth. Fair or not.