Clemson Extends Contract of Brad Brownell

Weeks after it was announced that Brad Brownell would return to the bench for his 8th season after his regular post-season meeting with Athletic Director Dan Radakovich, the Board of Directors for the University approved an extension of the existing contract of Brownell through the 2020-2021 season on Wednesday.

The base salary of the contract will remain largely unchanged as Brownell will earn $1.8 million in the ‘17-’18 season, $1.9 million in the ‘18-’19 season, and $2.0 Million for the remaining two years of the current contract. The major changes of the extended contract fall around the buyout agreement if Clemson were to decide to terminate Brownell prior to the expiration of his contract.

Under the terms of Brownell’s former contract, the university would owe him $3.5 million if he were fired at the end of last season and $3.0 million if he were terminated at the end of the ‘17-’18 season or ‘18-’19 season. The contract as been amended to significantly shrink these buyout figures. If Brownell were to be terminated at the end of the upcoming season, the buyout would now be $1.7 million and would shrink to $850,000 if he were terminated prior to April 30, 2019 and $425,000 if terminated prior to April 30, 2020.

This move will more than likely be met with confused anger from the fan base, who were calling for the removal of Brownell after an early exit in the NIT, and rumors of the availability of former Clemson graduate and former VCU head coach Will Wade. It was reported (not confirmed) that Radakovich was in contact with Wade about the current position, but these reports were vehemently denied by the Athletic Director. Wade has since taken the vacant coaching position at LSU.

Brownell has received unwavering support from Athletic Director Dan Radakovich and the university to the tune of 2 contract extensions and a long-needed yet superb $63.5 million renovation to Littlejohn Coliseum. Brownell strongly supports the mission and vision of the university as he has reached new highs in the program in player graduation rates and team GPA.

On the court, Brad Brownell has an overall record of 124-103 with the Tigers and has led them to an NCAA Tournament appearance (including a First Four Victory) as well as two NIT victories, and a trip to the Final Four at Madison Square Garden. Brownell currently sits first in program history in winning percentage against ACC Competition (an impressive statistic regarding the increased strength of the conference) and his 59 conference wins are tied for the most in program history with former coach Cliff Ellis.

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