chase, rogers county (4/19/2009 7:00:35 AM)

This kind of salary for a football or bashetball coach is just obscene,can you say CEO pay.It is no wonder they can't pay professors a goog wage.these salaries don't include houses and cars,or expense accounts.If they win a bid game they are paid bonues,just like wall street exec's.they should be paid like other teachers.

chase, rogers county (4/19/2009 7:04:23 AM)

sorry basketball,good big.

McBrain, (4/19/2009 7:31:05 AM)

I don't see 85,000 fans paying $60 per ticket to watch some poli-sci professor blather about our government. These coaches generate the pool of money they are paid from. I see no problem with what the universities decide to pay as long as that remains the same.

dave from afton, (4/19/2009 7:42:56 AM)

I want a goog wage whatever it might be. Sounds luscious and sinful.Coaches deserve their pay because when they lose they have to listen to all the whining by people who never played a down in Div.1.Gundy and Stoops play in the toughest conference in the country and they earn every penny they make.If your stuck at Quik Trip or KFC that's not any reason to squeal about people who are more motivated and successful.

Ol City Boy, (4/19/2009 7:52:14 AM)

I hope we're not seeing some professional jealousies with this article. Coaches of major colleges earn more than newspaper reporters. It would have been more meaningful for Stoops/Gundy salaries to be compared to other conference schools and/or other universities of comparable size across the nation. Bill Self earns a reported 3 million per year as basketball coach at Kansas Univ.

Are these salaries right or fair in comparison to other state or university employees ? That's a value judgment, but is probably more a reflection of our society as well as a job market phenomenon. All universities have to be competitive to attract and retain winning coaches just as any organization does.

A major college coach is much like an artist in that it takes time for them to build-up their price and the way they do that is by performing. You don't have winning seasons - you won't be around long....

I'm not sure why this was a front-page story.

Boomer, B-A (4/19/2009 8:33:47 AM)

"But Andrew Zimbalist, economics professor at Smith College in Massachusetts, called the coaches' market "artificial and trumped up."

Smith College?

Boomer, B-A (4/19/2009 8:51:20 AM)

Then move to NYC, Peck.

ajohnb, Jenks (4/19/2009 9:03:25 AM)

Really funny, where are all the Libs that would be lamblasting a CEO that makes that much money.

Oh, but it is okay because their programs bring in that money!!!! Hey McBrain, businesses generate the money they pay executives also.

And chase, both of these coaches are living in University houses and the local dealers give them new cars to drive. Don't kid yourself. Those are other perks that are not spoken of.

Jt4OU, mohnton (4/19/2009 9:10:54 AM)

I wonder is Peckaroony is realated to Nancy Pellosi

Barleybaby, (4/19/2009 9:32:40 AM)

Peck,

You should have stopped after your first couple of sentences. You only missed one point. Since the schools receive public funds we should cap the pay scale for all employees. Did you lose your copy of lib talking points from some blathering dot org?
Skating on oil profits? My yes those evil profits from even more evil oil.
Driving too many cars? I can only drive one at a time, it's none of your business just how many I own.
Anti environmental and EPA policies? Please cite.
Neglect of children and elderly? Please cite.
Always freaking crying about the arts. How about improving scores in those meaningless studies like reading, writing, math, and science?
Conservative EXTREMISTS? The lefties have a new word in their arsenal to denagrate others.
Some of the most corrupt officials? Chicago and its spin-offs come to mind here.
I agree with Boomer, MOVE!

Sherry, (4/19/2009 9:49:59 AM)

I'm not really a football fan, but I understand business. Both Stoops and Gundy are getting paid their market value. Like it or not, someone at both universities feels that those salaries are investments that return more than what it cost the university to pay them. Or they would pay them that amount.

Sharkey Hammerhead, owasso (4/19/2009 10:56:25 AM)

The pay scale for our coaches here in the state of OKla are just fine the are comparable to others across the nation , plus if you are Coach Stoops think how much money he has to spend to keep his kids sane , after all the bad pub you guy`s give him.. The man goes 10 - 2 and you guys call him a loser think what that does to his household ... As far as Gundy goes well He`s a full growed man he deserves his pay ,,....He` 40

Graybeard, Tulsa (4/19/2009 11:06:47 AM)

They deserve every dime. Look at the revenue their programs bring to the their respective Universities, especially Oklahoma.
Articles like this one point out part of the reason newsprint is becoming an extinct media......give us something really worth buying a paper for, will ya? Besides lining the bird cage bottom.

soonerfan509, tulsa (4/19/2009 11:22:46 AM)

The University of Oklahoma under the guidance of Bob Stoops,has made it to a BCS bowl/National Championship game 7 out of the 10 years he has been at OU.Just to make it to a BCS bowl last year paid 17 million dollars.That is ONE game.I don't know how much revenue OU gets just from regular season games but considering every home game gets sold out with somewhere in the neighborhood of 85,000 fans,lets say the average ticket price is $60,thats over $5 million a game just in ticket prices alone not to mention the money they make off of concessions and programs etc.Yea Bob Stoops is definately overpaid.What a crock of bull,if anything MR.Stoops deserves a raise.Now Mike Gundy on the other hand is a different story,if people want to say he is overpaid then I have no problem with that.

Moses, Jenks (4/19/2009 11:49:56 AM)

Both men are worth every penny!

towanda, (4/19/2009 12:15:28 PM)

Somebody call the Pulitzer committee. The Tulsa World really has some top notch investigative reporting here. They managed to state the obvious.

Royce, Tulsa (4/19/2009 12:30:31 PM)

Reduce their salaries to say $50.000/year, and see just how long they stay in Oklahoma.

You better know there are plenty of schools that would be plenty happy to employ either one of them, particularly Bob Stoops, at considerably more than they are being paid at OU and OSU.

Try doing that to Bob Stoops and see just how loudly the OU fans would scream.

Scooter1, Tulsa (4/19/2009 1:05:36 PM)

It must be a slow news day for this to be the lead story on the front page!! Wow, breaking news, the 2 coaches make millions. Stop the presses. LOL

kobuk, Sand Springs (4/19/2009 2:31:52 PM)

If the university was not there, would there be a football team? It seems as though we the people pay the taxes/donations to build the University. So, the university should run the show. Ticket sales should go to the University and not to athelitics. Maybe, if more of that money went to the university then the cost of an education would not go up every year for all those students who support the team.
Teachers and professors do not get paid more if they do a better job than the next guy. We don't see their expertise displayed as we through coaching.
Public schools have to compete with Universities for tax monies. If all universities played on a level field and had a maximum set for salaries for coaches then it would not be the money so much waggin the dog.
As gov. employees, they are not to take "bribes" or any kind of gift because of their position but coaches are "different"!
I think coaches should be paid well but I think teachers and professors should be on a merit type pay scale too. We just might see education improve across the nation.
Wouldn't it be nice if our comments solved anything.

Peter Piper, TULSA (4/19/2009 2:46:02 PM)

If Stoops loses one more BCS game (0-5 lately, 2-5 overall) he might need to dig into his millions to survive.DAVE: Big 12 toughest?? They just went 4-3 in Bowls (KU,NU,MO,TEX WON,-OU,OSU,TT LOST).I'll stick with the SEC! PECKAROONEY: YOU'RE O.K.!!Stoops' only 2 BCS victories were against much weaker teams--Wash. St. and Fl. St.Whoever is coach, OU will sell 85,000 tickets, just like NEB will sell 86,000!Football is the states' measuring rod.

rockfan, broken arrow (4/19/2009 4:32:49 PM)

I like sports but a society that values athletics more than education does'nt go very far.
I have felt that sports stars and coaches get paid way too much,i also hate the fact that commercialism seems to have taken over"The Tostitos Feiesta Bowl"give me a break!

rockfan, broken arrow (4/19/2009 4:34:12 PM)

Fiesta guess i've been watching too many sports too!

Bullhead, Nicut (4/19/2009 4:52:07 PM)

I do wish the regular employees could get a little take off the top of the ticket sales that the coaches bring in. I have to say I've seen the pay rate of professors and even worse, the staff. Oklahoma (the State) should be ashamed. The US should be ashamed. On the flip side, I agree Stoops deserves what his pay is. I just hope he takes us all the way this year. That other guy, OSU could do without. I do cheer for OSU when they're not playing OU though.

Ron B, (4/19/2009 8:29:28 PM)

My degree from OU is more valuable due to the fame of the football program. Football is a public relations arm of the university; people who know nothing about Oklahoma do know about the Sooners. The football program more than pays for itself, so what is the problem?

Arbythree, Tulsa (4/19/2009 9:08:08 PM)

These guys are in a profession that makes tons of money for their respective colleges. PLUS, they are in a high turn-over position.

Go Pokes and a big BOOMER SOONER!