The deal will keep him in Storrs through 2018 and includes some very achievable bonuses, given his Hall of Fame track record.
Smile, Geno. You have job security.
By PAT EATON-ROBB
STORRS, Conn. – Connecticut women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma has signed a new $10.86 million contract, a deal designed to keep him at the school through the 2017-18 season, UConn announced Wednesday.
The 59-year-old Hall of Famer, who has coached at UConn since 1985, will make $1.95 million in salary, speaking fees and media fees in the next year. That will gradually increase to $2.4 million in the final year of the five-year contract.
The move comes about three months after the school signed its first-year men's coach, Kevin Ollie, to a five-year deal worth just under $7 million.
"The last 28 years at Connecticut have been amazing and I am even more energized by what the future holds for our women's basketball program and our athletic department as a whole," Auriemma said in a written statement.
Auriemma also can earn a variety of bonuses based on the success of his program. He would get a half-month's salary each time he wins a conference regular-season or tournament title; another month's salary for making the NCAA tournament, a month's salary each time he makes the regional semifinals and the Final Four, and two-months' salary for a national title.
Auriemma has led the Huskies to seven national championships and 13 Final Fours, including the last five. UConn has won 37 Big East regular-season or tournament championships under him.
Connecticut will play in a vastly different-looking conference next year in a league filled with non-traditional opponents including Temple, Central Florida, Houston, Memphis, SMU and Tulane.
“We helped raise the level of the Big East to a national level, so we don’t think about what could have been or where we are going next,” Auriemma said. "Our goal is to win championships, and whether it’s the Big East or any conference we’re in, that’s not going to change."
"As I have said before, UConn has been great, is great and will be great in the future, and Geno Auriemma is a big reason for that," UConn director of athletics Warde Manuel said.
The Huskies (31-4) play Maryland in Saturday's Bridgeport Regional semifinal, the 20th consecutive year the Huskies have made the Sweet 16.
The contract takes effect April 15, after this year's tournament.
"Geno Auriemma has developed the University of Connecticut women's basketball team into one of the most beloved college athletic programs in the country in any sport," UConn president Susan Herbst said. "I am very pleased that he has signed a new contract, which shows his strong commitment and belief to our university and its division of athletics. It is people like Geno who have helped make UConn a strong and vibrant university, one which will continue to grow and excel even more in the future."