KISSIMMEE, Fla. — N.C. State athletics director Lee Fowler said UNC’s decision to give football coach Butch Davis a one-year extension and raise won’t necessarily impact Wolfpack coach Tom O’Brien’s deal. But asked if they would talk about an extension with their first-year coach after this season, he said: “We always do.”
“Tom has done what we thought he’d do: He’s come in and stabilized the program and has got it headed in the right direction. So he’s doing exactly what we thought he could do, he’s proven that … and we’re very happy with him.”
State will finish with a .500 record and become bowl-eligible if it beats Maryland on Saturday. Yet O’Brien makes less than Davis, who has led the Tar Heels to only three victories in his first season. UNC plays Duke on Saturday.
Davis’ one-year extension and $291,000 raise mean he will average more than $2 million per season. O’Brien makes a minimum of $1.1 million with incentives worth as much as $750,000.
Fowler would not comment on Davis’ deal, but in general said that it’s important to keep the coaches you have, especially if they’re moving the program in the right direction.
“Tom’s contract is really set up – and he wanted it that way – that if you perform at a high level, you’ll make really good money,’’ said Fowler, who was in Florida on Thursday to watch N.C. State’s men’s basketball team in the Old Spice Classic. “I think that’s a very fair and honest way to do things, and so we’re really happy the way we’ve got his contract structured.”
