URI Women’s Basketball Coach Reiss to Make About 25% of Men’s Coach Miller

Friday, April 01, 2022

GoLocalProv News Team

The two new college basketball coaches’ contracts at the University of Rhode Island show the massive differences between men’s and women’s basketball and especially the compensation of their coaches.

At Rhode Island, both contracts are layered with bonuses and incentives, but the differences are extreme — in their third years, women’s coach Tammi Reiss could go undefeated and win the National Championship and men’s coach Archie Miller could not win a single game, but she would earn less than one-quarter of Miller’s compensation.

College basketball has been under the microscope for sweeping inequalities.

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A 2021 report found, “The NCAA’s broadcast agreements, corporate sponsorship contracts, distribution of revenue, organizational structure and culture all prioritize Division I men’s basketball over everything else in ways that create, normalize and perpetuate gender inequities. At the same time, the NCAA does not have structures or systems in place to identify, prevent or address those inequities.”

The 100-page report written by the civil rights litigator Roberta A. Kaplan and her law firm found that the NCAA was earning far less than it should for television rights to the women’s basketball tournament. “An analysis, conducted as a part of the review, predicted that the contract to broadcast the women’s basketball tournament would be worth at least $85 million a year in 2025. Under a contract that last went to market 20 years ago and has not been ‘ materially renegotiated’ since its renewal a decade ago, the NCAA currently values ​​the television rights for the women’s tournament at less than $6 million a year,” reports the New York Times.

Reiss on the Way Up, Miller at the Crossroads

Reiss, who has been one of the hottest coaches in the country, was being targeted by top-tier programs, reportedly including the University of Virginia.

But Reiss’ compensation is just a fraction of what Miller will earn running URI’s men’s basketball program.

While Reiss is a rising coaching star, Miller was fired at his last job as the head coach at Indiana University. He was heavily criticized for his coaching and recruiting.

As GoLocal unveiled last week, Miller’s contract earns him as much as $2.3 million in some years regardless if he wins a single game or not.

Miller’s contract provides for layers of bonuses — unrelated to his performance or the team’s success.

Reiss was rewarded with a contract that can extend up to ten years and pays $425,000 a year and has a collection of minor incentives.

Moreover, Reiss has only one significant incentive above her base pay — she receives a bonus of $50,000 for winning the NCAA Championship. “The University shall pay to the Coach a one-time bonus of $50,000.00 (Fifty Thousand and no/100 Dollars) in addition to her Base Salary, for winning the NCAA Women’s Basketball Post Season Championship. The University shall pay Coach within thirty (30 ) days of the achievement of this performance criteria,” states the contract.

In contrast, Miller is paid a million in bonus payments for not leaving URI. According to his contract:

“In each of the first two Contract Years, the Coach shall receive, in addition to his Base Salary, the sum of $750,000.00 (Seven Hundred Fifty Thousand and no/100 Dollars) as a guaranteed portion of the gate receipts for all home games administered by the University’s Athletic Department.

In the third, fourth, and fifth Contract Years, the Coach shall receive, in addition to his Base Salary, the sum of $1,000,000.00 (One Million and no/100 Dollars) as a guaranteed portion of the gate receipts for all home games administered by the University’s Athletic Department. Said amounts shall be paid in equal installments on the pay date closest to but not after July 15, October 15, January 15, and April 15 of each Contract Year (for purposes of this Section 3.2.1, the “Payment Schedule”). The first such payment shall be on the pay date closest to but not after July 15, 2022. If consistent with University policies and procedures, this Payment Schedule may be modified by future written agreement between the parties,” according to the agreement.

Assistant Coaches – Less than Half of the Men’s Budget

A further inequity is the compensation pools for the assistant coaches. Reiss’ budget for her assistant coaches is as follows:

“The Coach shall have a salary pool of $360,825.00 (Three Hundred Sixty Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty-Five and no/100 Dollars) for the three full time assistant women’s basketball coaches. The director of basketball operations shall be paid a base salary of $61,250.00 ( Sixty-One Thousand Two Hundred Fifty and no/100 Dollars).The video coordinator shall be paid a base salary of $40,000.00 (Forty Thousand and no/100 Dollars),” state’s Reiss’ contract.

Miller’s assistant coaching budget is more than 50% higher. His contract provides for $765,000.

URI President Marc Parlange who approved both contracts refused to respond to questions.

UConn Parity, Other Schools Closing the Gap

These discrepancies in pay equity are being closed at many schools in contrast to URI’s new deals.

Just across the state line at the University of Connecticut, the Huskies feature two high-profile coaches. Women’s coach Geno Auriemma and men’s coach Dan Hurley receive similar total compensation packages.

Auriemma receives a total of $2.8 million and Hurley’s deal is for six years and $2.75 million annually, announced UConn in a press release.

“Auriemma’s extension will go through the 2025 season. He will earn a base salary of $600,000 per year, with speaking, consulting and media obligations adding an additional $2.2 million,” reports SI.

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley has urged that one initiative the NCAA can implement immediately to really help women close the gap with the men. Staley earns $3 million a year.

“The units,” Staley said in an interview with KDH Preseason, meaning money. “Like men’s basketball, they get units, and those units equal dollar signs. I would like for us to divvy it up like the 68 teams get (their money) divvied up once the tournament ends.”

“Men’s conferences get a unit valued this year at $338,210.96 for each NCAA Tournament game one of their teams plays. The money goes to each team’s conference paid out over six years with a true value around $2.03 million. That means the Big Ten will get more than $18 million thanks to having nine teams in this tournament field. Stanford, the women’s national champion in 2021, got no money for making the tournament field. None of the 68 teams this season will either,” said the report.

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