Nebraska latest program to reward coach for players' book work

1/24/2008 3:19 PM

By ERIC OLSON
AP Sports Writer

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -Bonuses rewarding academic achievement are nothing new in college football coaching contracts.

They are, however, new to Nebraska.

Bo Pelini's contract, released this week, calls for him to earn up to an additional $250,000 a year if his program reaches all academic milestones listed.

That's the second-highest maximum in the nation behind the $300,000 Ohio State's Jim Tressel could receive. But it is less than a third of the $800,000 Pelini would get for winning a national championship.

``You want a contract that fairly compensates the coach and signal what's important to the university,'' Chancellor Harvey Perlman said Thursday. ``If you're going to put incentives in for winning, then you should balance those with incentives for academic performance.''

Only one sentence in former coach Bill Callahan's contract was devoted to academics.

Pelini would be paid $125,000 if the program's graduation rate is equal to or greater than that of the general student body. Pelini also can earn bonuses based on the program's Academic Performance Rating, which the NCAA uses to measure athletes' progress toward graduation.

Athletic director Tom Osborne said he expects an academic bonus payment to Pelini to be ``fairly automatic'' each year.

Pelini, an academic All-American at Ohio State in the late 1980s, was widely reported to have walked around the Nebraska campus on the first day of the spring semester to make sure players were attending classes.

``He values education, and I think he and I both agree that's part of the job,'' Osborne said. ``If that clause wasn't in there, I don't think it would make a bit of difference in how Bo does his business.''

But the bonus is visible proof the university is concerned about athletes getting an education, Osborne said.

``It sends a message that the institution you're serving is interested and concerned about academics,'' Osborne said. ``A major part of what is expected is that players graduate and that their education is a major part of the mission.''