JONESBORO - Terry Mohajir sat at a table inside the ASU Football Complex the morning of Dec. 12 and discussed how he had lost a football coach for the second consecutive season despite a contract stipulation that he thought had provided Arkansas State with security against other schools in need of coaches.
“I don’t know what a big buyout is anymore,” Mohajir said.
Mohajir, who is in his second year as athletic director, had attached a $1.75 million buyout to former coach Bryan Harsin’s contract. The buyout meant that if Harsin broke his five-year deal after his first season to take a job at another school, as Hugh Freeze and Gus Malzahn had done the previous two years, Harsin would be on the hook for $1.75 million within 10 days of notifying ASU of his departure.
“It’s the only security that we have,” Mohajir said that day.
Mohajir went on to say that whoever he hired to replace Harsin would have a contract with similar stipulations.
That turned out to be the case Thursday when Blake Anderson was introduced asHarsin’s successor during a news conference at the Convocation Center. Anderson’s five-year, $3.5 million contract includes buyout clauses that give ASU more security against schools with bigger budgets coming after its coach than ever before.
If Anderson resigns from ASU before Jan. 31, 2016, he owes ASU $3 million. Anderson’s payment for leaving decreases to $2 million in 2017 and 2018 and $1 million in 2019.
Mohajir announced the buyout terms amidst cheers from fans in attendance during Thursday’s news conference, and said later that the figure was set no matter who he ended up hiring.
“It was going to be similar,” Mohajir said. “There was probably some room for negotiating, but it was similar.”
Anderson, who has coached at seven schools over 22 seasons, said he wasn’t bothered by the buyout figure. He was aware of ASU’s instability with head coaches and said he isn’t entering the post with intentions of leaving.
“I want to give the players that do all the work, I want to give them the best chance to build a program and have some continuity,” Anderson said. “If we do a great job and somebody comes calling, Iknow college football, that’s part of it. The buyout doesn’t scare me.”
Mohajir said Thursday that ASU has received the $1.75 million from Boise State for Harsin’s buyout, which came after it received $750,000 after Malzahn’s departure and $225,000 following Freeze’s departure for Ole Miss in 2011.
By comparison, Chris Petersen paid Boise State $750,000 when he broke his contract to go to Washington earlier this month, and the Seattle Times reported that Steve Sarkisian paid Washington $2.5 million when he left for Southern Cal.
Mohajir said there were no issues from Anderson’s representatives at the Legacy Agency during negotiations.
“It was easy,” Mohajir said.
Anderson spoke Thursday of his desire for his oldest son, 19-year-old Coleton, to plant roots after having lived in seven different states and for his daughter, 15-year-old Callie, to finish high school before moving again. He said he wanted to join a church, attend baseball games and become a part of the community.
He also said he wants to be able to recruit without getting questions from players, coaches and parents about how long he expects to stay in Jonesboro.
“I want families to know that they’re going to have a coach here for awhile,” Anderson said. “You guys should be the ones worried. You locked me in here forever. You have no idea. You’re stuck with me at this point.”
Sports, Pages 29 on 12/20/2013