Hugh Freeze's Auburn football staff won't include assistant Roc Bellantoni | Reports
AUBURN – Roc Bellantoni is not being retained on Hugh Freeze's Auburn football staff, according to multiple reports.
Bellantoni served as the special teams coordinator and coached edge/outside linebackers this season for Auburn football. He was brought to the Plains by former coach Bryan Harsin in 2021 as an analyst. He received a promotion in February after Bert Watts left the program.
On3 Sports was the first to report the news.
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Bellantoni and Auburn agreed to a contract worth $425,000 annually that began Feb. 21, 2022, and was scheduled to end Jan. 31, 2024. Assuming the university officially terminated the deal Wednesday, there were still 14 months remaining on the agreement.
Per the terms of the contract, Bellantoni is due the full amount of money left on the deal. Meaning, if the contract was terminated and 14 months still remained, he is due approximately $495,000, paid in equal monthly installments. However, as his contract stipulates, Bellantoni has a duty to mitigate and offset. This means he must reasonably attempt to look for another job (mitigate), and what he is owed from Auburn will be subtracted by whatever his new job pays (offset).
It's the second domino to fall as Freeze fills out his staff. His first move was to promote Carnell "Cadillac" Williams to associate head coach. Williams, who served as the interim head coach for the final month of the season after Harsin was fired, announced his elevation via Twitter on Tuesday.
The edge position at Auburn this past season under Bellantoni was a strength. Derick Hall and Colby Wooden combined for 13 sacks and 23 tackles for loss. Bellantoni also didn't have a full room, as Eku Leota went down with an injury early in the season and missed nearly the entire year.
Richard Silva is the Auburn beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football: Roc Bellantoni not retained on Hugh Freeze's staff
