Bryan Harsin's buyout: What Auburn owes football coach if the school fires him without cause
AUBURN — Auburn is holding its collective breath.
The university has now acknowledged twice that there is some form of administrative examination into football coach Bryan Harsin's program — first with Auburn president Jay Gogue's public comments Friday, then with a team statement Monday.
If Auburn and Harsin part ways, there are three possible outcomes. One is that Harsin gets fired for cause if AU has a substantial reason, in which case the school would not have to pay him a buyout. It would likely result in legal ramifications. The two parties could also reach a settlement, both agreeing to go their separate ways with a negotiated financial conclusion.
The third possibility is that Auburn might simply have to pay Harsin his full buyout if the school fires him without cause. If that's the case, Auburn would owe him an $18.2 million buyout — the largest of this offseason's college football coaching carousel.
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Harsin and Auburn agreed to a six-year contract worth a total of $31.5 million, which went into effect Dec. 23, 2020.
According to the terms of the contract, firing Harsin without cause means the university would owe him a guaranteed 70% of the remainder of his contract. Harsin made $5 million in his first year, a salary that was set to increase by $100,000 annually beginning Jan. 1 of this year.
He would be owed 50% of the buyout (about $9.1 million) within 30 days, followed by four annual, equal payments of about $2.275 million to cover the rest.
It's a similar format to Auburn's agreement with the previous coach, Gus Malzahn, who was guaranteed 75% of his remaining contract. He was fired after the third season of a seven-year, $49 million extension, which required Auburn to pay him a $21.45 million buyout. That also required half of the payment within 30 days and the rest in four equal increments.
The coaching change amidst a pandemic was partially responsible for the athletic department's first financial deficit in seven years. While other spending decreased during the 2021 fiscal year, Auburn reported $16.66 million in severance spending, including $16.09 million related to the football team. It accounted for 12.5% of the department's total operating expenses. Auburn also owed buyouts to offensive coordinator Chad Morris and defensive coordinator Kevin Steele.
Harsin's buyout, like Malzahn's, cannot be offset by taking a job at another program, meaning he would get every penny owed. Auburn is still paying Malzahn, who has now been UCF's coach for one season. So if Auburn fires Harsin, it will have committed almost $40 million since December 2020 toward coaches no longer associated with the school.
Harsin's buyout would exceed that of former LSU coach Ed Orgeron for the largest buyout of this offseason in college football. Orgeron and LSU reached a settlement in which he was owed his full $16.9 million. Florida owed former coach Dan Mullen $12 million after firing him in November.
Auburn also recently gave men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl a raise and extension, making him likely the fourth highest-paid coach in the sport. He'll make an average of $6.275 million for the next eight years.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Bryan Harsin buyout: What Auburn owes football coach if he gets fired
