Unique Circumstances
Any other coach who has a record of 20-62 and 5-46 in the conference over three seasons would be fired the first chance they got. That isn’t the case with Hoiberg, and it doesn’t have anything to do with loyalty to a guy. The former Athletic Director Bill Moos extended Hoiberg after the first season and heading into the Covid season. The deal was not made public and it gave coach Hoiberg a full seven years and a buyout of 18.5 million dollars. No university would be able to afford the buyout.
It is compounded by the fact that the football program at Nebraska, which is what the school prides itself on, is also a mess. Alberts was brought in to fix the football program and even though he was able to reduce the deal for current head coach Scott Frost the buyout is still 7.5 million dollars.
If Nebraska were to fire both coaches this year which is what seems plausible given how the tenures of each man have gone that would be 26 million dollars tied up in coaches who are no longer coaching here. That would leave an extremely minimal budget to hire a new coach and assistants.
Obviously, the fans are restless as they fired a coach who had the Huskers competitive in the Big Ten and helped make the Huskers relevant again. Coach Miles was fired because many felt he had reached his ceiling and Hoiberg came in to continue the upward trend of the program. The fans have lost patience as evidenced by the falling attendance numbers. It is going to be a very fine line with Alberts as he must make the right decision on the basketball coach before all of the fans and season ticket holders move on for good. There is already a large decrease in season ticket renewals for next year.
The other thing that needs to be discussed is that Hoiberg may be failing here, at least in the next three years, but he is one of the best schemers in the game. Sure, the results have not been there but if you ask around coach Hoiberg is regarded as one of the best basketball minds in the game. He is still coveted by many NBA teams as a head coach or in a front-office role.
Hoiberg has never been unsuccessful as a coach or player at any level of basketball. This is the first failure he has ever experienced and when he says this is the hardest year he has ever had, and he is trying everything to figure it out I do believe him. The coach also has a heart condition which is the main reason his competitive basketball career was cut short in his prime. There are some substantial rumors that Fred will walk away from Nebraska as his heart isn’t in this and will just admit defeat.
I can tell you with certainty from what I have heard and from what I know about Fred Hoiberg that won’t happen. He has a ton of pride and confidence in himself to figure this out and see it through. He may accept a revamped contract that would lower his buyout which would make it a little more affordable for Nebraska, but keep in mind as so many are ready to get rid of the current coach.
The Huskers have to have a pool of money to make competitive offers to coaches and the only way that happens is if Hoiberg can be convinced to take a reduced deal with a lowered buy-out. Otherwise, it would make the most financial sense to keep him for the next two years when the buyout lowers.
I am not the Athletic Director, I have no advanced knowledge of what conversations coach Hoiberg and AD Alberts are talking about, but I do know that in these situations the incoming recruits are usually the first to know for a chance to get out of their letter of intent. Not a single player in that class has ever wavered on their commitment to Nebraska and coach Hoiberg so that should tell you something about the status of the coach.
Rumors are rumors and they are understandable given the way the team has performed thus far, but the bigger picture is in play and it does involve money and a lot of it. Hoiberg is likely safe from being fired or forced resignation because Nebraska will have to pay that money if either of those things happens.
With rumors come the hopes of new coaches and a new regime. Any new coach would instantly spark yet another rebuild within the program and would potentially set the program back further. There are some coaches’ names who Nebraska should be able to get within their budget if they do make a change at both the money-making sports. There are also some names who would take the job but Nebraska likely couldn’t afford.