Texas A&M AD Ross Bjork said the school went through search firm TurnkeyZRG in the process that saw them hire new football coach Mike Elko because "they understand the landscape,” according to Andrew Hattersley of 247SPORTS.com. Bjork detailing the search process said, "We started the process Sunday night on Nov. 12. People think search firms pick the coach for you. That's not how it works." Bjork said the search firm's "job is to understand the landscape throughout the whole year, not just during football season, not just when I call them on Nov. 12 and say, hey okay, are you ready?" He added search firms are "always ready" and they "understand who's movable." Bjork: "Coach Elko was on our list from the very beginning. And as the process unfolded, as the identity of what we really, really wanted and we thought was the right DNA of a program that wins, he obviously rose to the top. So there was engagement from the beginning and like I said, everybody was active. We kept that process going all the way through Saturday night, Sunday morning, and then we went and picked him up last night" (247SPORTS.com, 11/27).
HERE COMES THE MONEY: In Houston, Brent Zwerneman wrote Bjork had “pledged an incentive-based contract” for A&M’s next coach following the "mess for the university" concerning former coach Jimbo Fisher’s guaranteed contract. That is “what Elko received,” with his deal featuring a $7M annual base salary "over six years,” and an extra $3.5M if A&M wins a national title. He will receive an additional $2.5M if A&M plays in the national title game, $2M if they play in the CFP semifinals, $1.5M if they play in the CFP quarterfinals and/or win an SEC title, and $1M if they make the CFP, which expands from four to 12 teams next year. A&M "still owes" Fisher about $77M with eight years remaining on a guaranteed contract, a “record buyout” for a college coach, and A&M “vowed not to go back down that path with their new hire.” Elko’s deal “includes a buyout of 75% of the contract’s remaining value in the first three years” and "80% in the final three years” (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 11/27).
