Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson got the news just before his team flew to Charlotte, N.C., Friday for Saturday’s ACC championship game against Florida State. Johnson’s Atlanta-based agent, Jack Reale, called to tell him that he and Tech athletic director Mike Bobinski had reached an agreement in principle to extend his contract by four years, through the 2020 season.
“It was very good,” Reale said Saturday of Johnson’s response. “I think he was glad and relieved.”
Johnson entered the season with two years remaining on his existing contract, through 2016. It had last been extended by one season near the end of Tech’s ACC championship season in 2009. His status was the subject of considerable discussion among Yellow Jackets fans, some of whom began the season hoping this would be Johnson’s last following a string of seasons in which the Jackets were competitive but unable to seize greatness.
But the Jackets’ 10-win season, the team’s fourth since 1956, with the team’s first-ever sweep of rivals Clemson, Georgia, Miami and Virginia Tech, offered a strong endorsement of his fitness for the job, particularly given that Tech was picked to finish fifth in the division in a preseason media poll. This past Tuesday, he was named ACC coach of the year for the third time in his seven seasons.
“I do really believe, as I look at how this year has played out and the things that we’ve learned about ourselves and how we’ve competed and how we’re able to compete, knowing that we’re setting ourselves up for a deeper, possibly more talented roster down the road, those are good things,” Bobinski said. “I have a lot of anticipation about the years ahead.”
Bobinski said discussions began in advance of the Clemson game, which was played Nov. 15. Negotiation began in earnest this past week. Both sides were eager to reach an agreement before the end of the week, as Johnson and his coaching staff will go on the recruiting trail Monday. As the staff meets this month with prospects committed for the 2015 signing class, a new contract will serve as evidence of Johnson and his staff’s job security.
“I thought it was important we were able to do something,” Bobinski said.
According to Reale, the extension itself and an increase in the salary pool for his assistants were Johnson’s priorities in negotiations. Johnson also received a raise. Reale declined to specify the numbers, but said that his client is “well-compensated with respect to his peers and at a level that he certainly has earned and is justified in the coaching profession.” A considerable portion of the deal is guaranteed.
“I’ll simply say that he’s very pleased with the extension and the nature of the guarantees,” Reale said. “It’s substantial.”
Johnson is making $2.6 million this season. According to contract information collected by USA Today, that’s fifth among ACC coaches. Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher’s 2014 salary is highest at $3.6 million. He is followed by Clemson’s Dabo Swinney ($3.2 million), Louisville’s Bobby Petrino ($3 million) and Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer ($2.7 million).
“I am excited that we were able to work out a contract extension,” Johnson said in a statement. “I appreciate the support of our fans, students and alumni during my time here. My family and I are looking forward to being a part of Georgia Tech for a long time.”
The deal will be signed upon Johnson and Bobinski’s return to Atlanta following Saturday’s game.
“I’m glad to have it over and done with,” Bobinski said. “It’s a good thing.”
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