Follow the Money College athletics may kill the goose who laid the golden egg. by DENNIS FREELAND When is a contract not a contract? When is a commitment not a commitment? The answer can be found in the increasingly high-priced arena of college sports. If a player wants out of his scholarship, he has to pay a price — one year of eligibility. But all a coach has to do is walk away to a higher-paying job. This week, University of Memphis defensive coordinator John Thompson turned his back on the Tiger football program to take the same position at Louisiana State University. Thompson came to Memphis just last year, receiving a two-year contract and six-figure salary — both unprecedented at the school. “It’s disappointing,” Tiger head coach Rip Scherer said from his car phone while recruiting in Alabama. “We gave John a two-year contract when he came here with the idea that we were making a two-year commitment and we were getting the same.” Reportedly LSU will pay Thompson $200,000 a year. “By the same token,” Scherer continued, “I understand. He’s probably put himself in position as one of the highest-paid assistants in the country.” Last week LSU hired Nick Saban from Michigan State. Saban will reportedly draw an annual salary in excess of $1 million. Scherer says the U of M did not let Thompson go without a fight. “R.C. [Johnson] made a really generous offer, way beyond what I thought we could do,” Scherer said, “but it didn’t match them. We don’t have the same capability.” Who wouldn’t change jobs for double the money? Not Scherer. Not me. But someone needs to ask some serious questions of LSU and other schools who seem to have confused college football with the NFL. There is no way to justify paying a college football coach a million dollars a year. At this rate, it won’t be long before only a few schools will be able to afford college football. And isn’t that exactly what SEC commissioner and Bowl Championship Series (BCS) architect Roy Kramer wants? Forty teams and four or five super conferences controlling all the power and all the money in college football. Memphis, Louisville, Wyoming, and Brigham Young? Let them play soccer. But for Thompson the grass may not be greener on the Louisiana side of the fence. The LSU program has gone thorough some difficult times. Some think that the athletes in that area of the country are hard to coach. Will Thompson’s personal, hands-on approach work in the bayou? Expectations of LSU fans are notoriously and unrealistically high. Tiger Stadium is being enlarged even though several games this year were less than sellouts. Saban and his staff will be expected to fill those seats. Furthermore, Thompson doesn’t even know Saban. Worse still, the new LSU head man is a former defensive coach. Both Thompson’s previous boss at Southern Miss and Scherer were offensive coaches who allowed him to run his unorthodox defense without opposition. It may be different with the head coach looking over his shoulder, second-guessing, micro-managing. Thompson did a great job at Memphis. Too bad he didn’t stick around to finish the job. A New Day It was just one win. And it came in front of only 6,734 (10,353 paid). But Memphis’ 82-72 victory over 25th-ranked Miami was as important a win as the Tigers have had in the last three or four seasons. There was a spirit during and after the game that has been sorely lacking in the past. Several hundred fans stayed after the game to listen to the post-game radio show and to jubilate (to use the phrase of a long-gone former coach). The difference between Johnny Jones and his predecessor is immense. Jones has a genuine warmth and charisma. And, as my wife noted while watching his TV show, “He doesn’t sound like a coach.” It is easy to see why Jones is legendary on the recruiting trail. And he is looking more and more like an excellent strategist. “That guy can really coach,” said an admiring assistant among the crowd at court side listening to Jones talk to Dave Woloshin and Hank McDowell. “He can flat-out coach.” Evidence of Jones’ coaching ability: Memphis kept a superior Miami team off balance by switching defenses. Further proof could be found in the way in which the Memphis players competed. “Memphis was extremely hungry. There were some times they could have allowed the game to get away from them, but they hung tough, scrapped, and just made plays,” Miami coach Leonard Hamilton said after the game. “They had a high level of concentration. That’s a tribute to Johnny.”