New DC owes Memphis $2 million for leaving for Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech’s hiring of Jason Semore to be its new defensive coordinator came with a hefty price tag for Semore, according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

Semore was hired by Memphis and Memphis coach Charles Huff at the start of the year. Semore signed a two-year contract with a base annual salary of $500,000, but the memorandum of understanding stated Semore would owe the school 200% of the money owed to him if he left Memphis within 120 days of his hiring — which Semore now has done.

On Wednesday, Tech officially announced Semore’s hiring.

“It’s an honor to be the defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech. Thank you to Coach (Brent) Key and our administration for their trust in me,” Semore said in a release. “We’re going to work tirelessly to create an aggressive, exciting brand of defensive football and to continue to elevate this program to a championship level.”

Typically, the hiring school agrees to pay such a buyout, and although $2 million may seem like a sizable chunk, Tech is already due a good sum of money for the departure of assistant coaches Buster Faulkner, Norval McKenzie, Geep Wade, Trent McKnight and Blake Gideon, all of whom departed Tech for jobs elsewhere,

Per the terms of his extended contract signed in July, Faulkner owes Tech $1.25 million for leaving to be the offensive coordinator at Florida. Had he coached the Jackets in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Dec. 27 and then left, he would only be on the hook for 75% of that amount.

Gideon was making an annual salary of $1 million and, per the terms of his contract, owes Tech 50% of his total base salary for taking a position at Texas.