When Texas A&M extended Jimbo Fisher’s contract just days before the Aggies kicked off the 2021 season, the outlook for the programme was bright.
The team was coming off its best season under Fisher, a 9-1 campaign with a top-five ranking in the polls, only its second such finish since joining the SEC in 2012. Recruiting was on the rise, and the class Fisher and his staff assembled that summer would eventually become the highest-rated in the era of internet recruiting rankings.
After signing Fisher to a 10-year, $75 million contract in 2017 to lure him away from Florida State, Texas A&M doubled down in September 2021, extending him through 2031 for nearly $95 million, fully guaranteed.
“Coach Fisher continues to demonstrate that he is building our program for long-term success and is a perfect fit for Texas A&M,” athletic director Ross Bjork said in a statement accompanying the news of Fisher’s extension. “There is momentum in all phases of our programme and we are excited about what lies ahead for Aggie football.”
Fisher, in a statement of his own that praised A&M’s investment and support, concluded, “It is an honour to be the head football coach at Texas A&M, and while I am proud of the progress we have made, we are not done yet!”
More than two years later, Fisher is done. Texas A&M fired Fisher on Sunday. The Aggies were 45-25 in Fisher’s six seasons at the helm.
Since the programme peaked in 2020 and the extension was signed, Texas A&M is 19-15 overall, 10-13 against SEC competition and 12-14 against Power 5 opponents. Since 2021, the Aggies are 4-10 in games decided by eight points or less and have lost seven straight such games. Texas A&M hasn’t won a true road game since 16 October 2021, a stretch of nine straight losses. The Aggies are a disappointing 6-4 this autumn.
With the Aggies failing to make significant positive strides in the sixth year of the Fisher era, Texas A&M decided to part ways with Fisher, despite more than $77 million remaining on his contract. Although Fisher’s massive buyout has become a popular punchline in discussions of the Aggies’ predicament, there is one aspect of it that has often been overlooked: They don’t have to fork it over all at once.
Fisher’s contract explains the buyout’s payment schedule as follows:
“The University shall pay twenty-five percent (25%) of such amount in a lump sum within (60) days of the effective date of termination of the Agreement, and the remaining balance shall be paid to Coach in equal annual payments beginning one hundred twenty (120) days after the effective date of termination of this Agreement and continuing through the original end date of this Agreement, December 31, 2031.”
What does it mean for Texas A&M to fire Fisher? The Aggies don’t have to write Fisher a $77 million cheque right away.
In the short term, Texas A&M will have to write Fisher two cheques within four months. The first, due within 60 days of the termination, would be for $19.3 million. The second, due within 120 days of the termination, would be the first of eight annual payments for the remainder of the contract: $7.2 million.
In total, the Aggies owe Fisher $26.6 million between now and 11 March 2024. It’s certainly not chump change, but it’s a lot more manageable than having to pay the entire contract up front. The rest will be paid in annual instalments of $7.2 million from 2025 to 2031, meaning the Aggies will essentially be paying two head coaches for the next eight years.
Fisher’s predecessor, Kevin Sumlin, received a lump-sum payment at the end of his contract: The entire remainder of the five-year, $30 million contract he signed at the end of the 2013 season was owed to him within 60 days. When he was released after the 2017 season, the school fulfilled that obligation with a one-time payment of $9.9 million in early 2018, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Here’s a breakdown of the payment structure for the remainder of Fisher’s contract, which runs through December 31, 2031:
Total buyout: $77,562,500
Lump sum (25%) due (within 60 days): $19,390,625
Eight payments commencing no later than 11 March 2024 and continuing annually until 2031: $7,271,484
Fisher has no obligation to mitigate his salary by finding another job, so if he is coaching somewhere in the near future, his new salary will not offset what Texas A&M owes him.
Asked if Texas A&M expected to pay the full buyout, Bjork said on Sunday: “There are different parameters that are outlined in the contract. Those mechanics will be worked out once we get in touch with (Fisher’s) representation. Fisher is represented by Jimmy Sexton.
And for those who think the Texas A&M boosters are footing the bill, think again. Program sources have told The Athletic several times over the past year that if Fisher is fired, it won’t be the donors who pay the buyout. Bjork confirmed as much on Sunday.
“Texas A&M Athletics and the 12th Man Foundation will be the sole sources of the necessary funds to cover these transition costs,” Bjork said.
The 12th Man Foundation is the primary fundraising arm for A&M athletics and is closely affiliated with the school (its headquarters are just steps from Kyle Field), but is technically a separate 501(c)3 entity. Bjork said the 12th Man Foundation will use unrestricted funds to cover the initial $19.3 million payment. The athletic department will make the annual payments to Fisher for the remainder of the contract “by increasing our revenues and adjusting our annual operating budget accordingly”.
Even the short-term money owed by Texas A&M exceeds the largest buyout known to have been paid to a fired coach: $21.4 million to former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn. And that doesn’t include the money the programme would need to hire a new head coach and staff, which would be substantial.
If a potential new head coach’s salary and staff pool matches what A&M is currently paying for its staff (a combined $17 million annually), making a change will require more than $40 million in salaries over the next calendar year when Fisher’s buyout is factored in. Even for an athletic department as flush with cash as the Aggies – Texas A&M had $193 million in revenue and $177 million in expenses in 2022 – that’s hard to swallow.
Still, A&M’s leadership had seen enough. Fisher is out, but the Aggies aren’t done paying him, and won’t be for another eight years.