Nebraska's Tim Miles apologizes for 'sarcastic' comment about still being a millionaire if fired
Nebraska Cornhuskers men’s basketball coach Tim Miles’ hot seat is getting steamier as he walks back comments about “still being a millionaire” even if he loses his job at the end of the season.
Nebraska (15-12, 5-11) is fighting for its tournament life after another crushing loss this week. The team is tied for 10th in the Big Ten standings, despite returning four starters from a team that finished the 2017-18 season fifth.
It has put Miles, in his seventh season, in danger of losing his job when March rolls around.
Miles: ‘I’m still a millionaire’
Miles was indeed willing to speak “openly and candidly about being on the hot seat,” as host Jeff Goodman of WatchStadium said in the introduction to his Good N’ Plenty podcast.
He may have gone a little too far.
Miles discussed with Goodman approximately 14 minutes into the podcast the good and bad aspects of Twitter and how social media has created more talk of coaches on the hot seat.
“There’s a price of doing business type of thing and the noise, of course, is one of them,” he said.
Goodman followed it up by saying he would no longer do a “hot seat meter” at the low- and mid-major level because “those guys don’t make enough money to be crucified.”
Which led to Miles talking about getting his start and not doing it all for the money, even falling into debt at his first job. He agreed with Goodman that it’s easier as a coach to be on the hot seat when a contract is closer to $2 million than $20,000, leading to the controversial comments.
”If they fire me, they’re still going to pay me. I’m still a millionaire, so I’ve got that going for me,” Miles said.
Miles was given a one-year contract extension after Nebraska made the NIT last year. They lost in the first round to Mississippi State. He is under contract through March 2021 and would receive a $2.52 million buyout if fired next month.
The Cornhuskers are at risk of missing the NCAA Tournament for a fifth consecutive year.
Miles apologizes after uproar
Miles took heat from the local media after the Sunday podcast and a blowout loss Tuesday night to Penn State, 95-71, in State College, Pennsylvania. The Huskers had won two in a row going into the game after a seven-game losing skid. It was the Nittany Lions’ highest offensive production of the year.
Steven M. Sipple of the Lincoln Journal Star was one of those who ripped into the coach, leading his “Three Quick Thoughts” column with the podcast remarks. He wrote the comments were bad timing, regardless of context, and ended the third thought with a nice jab at the team’s performance afterward.
“One would think the Huskers would play with urgency befitting a team trying to scrape out Quad I wins and perhaps save the head coach’s job in the process,” Sipple wrote. “Instead, they played with all the urgency of a retired couple on a two-week Caribbean vacation.”
Miles issued an apology Thursday on Twitter, alleging it was a sarcastic moment.
"Earlier this week, my (sarcastic) attempt at humor during a podcast failed. Anyone who knows me understands that I got into coaching and remain a basketball coach for reasons far beyond money. I apologize to anyone offended or taken aback by my flippant remark.
— Tim Miles (@CoachMiles) February 21, 2019
Miles, in his seventh year, has taken the team to the tournament once. He spoke with Goodman about his one-year deal compared to a full five years and the pain of a losing streak. He followed up his apology tweet with one noting his love and commitment to Nebraska and its basketball team.
Cashing in on contracts in college
It’s difficult not to tie Miles’ comments in with the biggest story still swirling in the sports world. When Duke freshman Zion Williamson busted out of his shoe against North Carolina this week and exited with a knee sprain (he’s listed as day-to-day), Twitter erupted with anger at the college “shamateurism” system.
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Williamson, an exceptional talent and consensus No. 1 draft pick, brought more excitement than usual to the Duke-UNC rivalry — even former President Barack Obama was in attendance — but nearly everyone but him and the fellow players profited it from it.
While Miles can go ahead and defend his comments as “sarcasm,” it’s simple to see why as little as a throwaway, offhanded remark about making millions to not coach a team would ripple so violently through the college basketball circles.
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