Vitello extended!

#26
#26
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Former Arkansas Assistant Gets Payday After Winning National Title

Vitello doubles up Van Horn as Tennessee's coach becomes highest paid in college baseball.
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Vitello's New Contract Puts Roadblock in Razorbacks' Hopes for Reunion​


FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — There's no question Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn and Tennessee coach Tony Vitello respect each other. Vitello, who worked as Van Horn's assistant from 2014-2017, mentioned Van Horn just moments after winning his first national title in his postgame press conference.

"Coach Van Horn gave me that opportunity and also helped lead me along the way," Vitello said. "The one thing I’d like to say and I think some of them appreciate I hustled around down there. Most of them hate me, which is fine, but what they need to realize is their program definitely had a hand in what happened tonight. There’s no question about that."

However, any plans involving Vitello in a post-Dave Van Horn era for the Razorbacks just got less likely. Vitello was rewarded with a handsome new contract after winning his first national title.

According to Mike Wilson of KnoxNews, Vitello will reportedly make $3 million a year for the next 5 years, making him the highest-paid coach in college baseball. It's more than double Van Horn's reported annual salary of $1.25 million from an extension he signed in 2021.

There are other reasons for Vitello to stay put at Tennessee as well. The Volunteers are currently in the midst of a three-year, $96 million project to renovate Lindsey Nelson Stadium to increase the capacity from 5,548 to about 7,750.

The two teams did not face each other in the 2024 season, with Tennessee winning all three major titles, a share of the SEC East, the SEC Tournament and became the first No.1 overall seed to win the national title since the Miami Hurricanes in 1999 with a 6-5 win in the deciding game against Texas A&M.

It's not lost on Van Horn that his former assistant won it all before he did. Arkansas was bounced in the Fayetteville Regional for the second straight year.

"It’s bittersweet because they won it and we didn’t," Van Horn said in June. "People are happy there and people are not happy here."
 
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#27
#27
MAD said:
View attachment 670091


www.si.com

Former Arkansas Assistant Gets Payday After Winning National Title

Vitello doubles up Van Horn as Tennessee's coach becomes highest paid in college baseball.
www.si.com www.si.com

Vitello's New Contract Puts Roadblock in Razorbacks' Hopes for Reunion​


FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — There's no question Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn and Tennessee coach Tony Vitello respect each other. Vitello, who worked as Van Horn's assistant from 2014-2017, mentioned Van Horn just moments after winning his first national title in his postgame press conference.

"Coach Van Horn gave me that opportunity and also helped lead me along the way," Vitello said. "The one thing I’d like to say and I think some of them appreciate I hustled around down there. Most of them hate me, which is fine, but what they need to realize is their program definitely had a hand in what happened tonight. There’s no question about that."

However, any plans involving Vitello in a post-Dave Van Horn era for the Razorbacks just got less likely. Vitello was rewarded with a handsome new contract after winning his first national title.

According to Mike Wilson of KnoxNews, Vitello will reportedly make $3 million a year for the next 5 years, making him the highest-paid coach in college baseball. It's more than double Van Horn's reported annual salary of $1.25 million from an extension he signed in 2021.

There are other reasons for Vitello to stay put at Tennessee as well. The Volunteers are currently in the midst of a three-year, $96 million project to renovate Lindsey Nelson Stadium to increase the capacity from 5,548 to about 7,750.

The two teams did not face each other in the 2024 season, with Tennessee winning all three major titles, a share of the SEC East, the SEC Tournament and became the first No.1 overall seed to win the national title since the Miami Hurricanes in 1999 with a 6-5 win in the deciding game against Texas A&M.

It's not lost on Van Horn that his former assistant won it all before he did. Arkansas was bounced in the Fayetteville Regional for the second straight year.

"It’s bittersweet because they won it and we didn’t," Van Horn said in June. "People are happy there and people are not happy here."
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Go to hell, Arkansas! Bunch of pompous d-bags. Never seen a fanbase so proud of so little hardware.
 
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#31
#31
EZE said:
Definitely.

Very telling that the buyout gets cut in half if White leaves as AD. These coaches love coaching for him.

I attended UT in the late 80s. This is the best administration…top to bottom… that we’ve had since that time. And I don’t think it’s close.
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Yep. As I said in another thread, it's amazing what good leadership can do. The culture shift across the university has been noticeable. And I don't even live close by but can see it.
 
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#33
#33
walkenvol said:
Did it say what the buy out is?
Click to expand...
“As for Vitello, his new salary isn’t the only great thing about his contract. In addition to receiving a $200,000 bonus for winning the national title in 2024, he also receives a $250,000 signing bonus. As for buyout details for Vitello, he would owe the Volunteers $4 million if he were to leave before next July, he would owe $3 million in 2026, $2 million in ’27, $1 million in ’28 and that buyout number would drop all the way to $400,000 the final year of his contract. Interestingly, Vitello’s buyout would be slashed in half should Danny White not be Tennessee’s athletic director.” - D1 Kendall Rodgers
 
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#34
#34
We all have enjoyed the improvements CTV has brought to our baseball program and the championship is icing on the cake! I still wonder how the coaches of sports that aren’t profitable are getting these huge salaries. The football & basketball coach’s salaries ramped up in conjunction with the huge TV contracts with the programs operating in the black. With the players getting a larger share of the profits, will there be enough left to fund the non revenue sports in a few years? I sure hope so.
 
#35
#35
walkenvol said:
We all have enjoyed the improvements CTV has brought to our baseball program and the championship is icing on the cake! I still wonder how the coaches of sports that aren’t profitable are getting these huge salaries. The football & basketball coach’s salaries ramped up in conjunction with the huge TV contracts with the programs operating in the black. With the players getting a larger share of the profits, will there be enough left to fund the non revenue sports in a few years? I sure hope so.
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It has already affected the soccer ⚽️ team.
 
#39
#39
walkenvol said:
We all have enjoyed the improvements CTV has brought to our baseball program and the championship is icing on the cake! I still wonder how the coaches of sports that aren’t profitable are getting these huge salaries. The football & basketball coach’s salaries ramped up in conjunction with the huge TV contracts with the programs operating in the black. With the players getting a larger share of the profits, will there be enough left to fund the non revenue sports in a few years? I sure hope so.
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You make an interesting point. You can’t measure the soft profit that the baseball team brings to the university. The amount of eyes and impressions that see UT baseball’s success raises the profile of UT and makes it a more valuable institution. Plus, you couldn’t buy better PR that CTV and the baseball team provide. He’s a bargain at $3M IMHO.
 
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#42
#42
taylorvol said:
You make an interesting point. You can’t measure the soft profit that the baseball team brings to the university. The amount of eyes and impressions that see UT baseball’s success raises the profile of UT and makes it a more valuable institution. Plus, you couldn’t buy better PR that CTV and the baseball team provide. He’s a bargain at $3M IMHO.
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This is true.
When looking at revenue, Pat Summitt was vastly overpaid as that program's revenue in no way justified a salary as high as she received and in the free market, I doubt any school - and especially the WNBA was going to offer anywhere near that amount and steal her away from the Hill.

The Lady Vol specific boosters still do not donate enough to fund the program then or now.

But she was a primary face of the school and she was paid as such.

Now that I think about, higher education - academic and athletic, are not known for the cost controls as there are thousands of professors nationally paid based on reputation alone and certainly not on teaching, research, or publishing.
 
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