Frank Martin, USC agree to contract extension, tweaked buyout. What it means
Frank Martin will remain the head men’s basketball coach at South Carolina.
The school’s board of trustees met Friday to discuss a proposed two-year contract extension with a revised buyout agreement, and the motion received full board approval that afternoon.
The extension adds two years to Martin’s current contract, which was slated to expire in March 2023. Under the agreement, Martin maintains his current compensation for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. His $3.3 million salary for the 2022-23 season would extend into the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons.
As part of the extension, the university tweaked Martin’s buyout agreement slightly. Should the university move to terminate his contract after the 2021-22 season, USC would owe Martin no more than $3 million — lowered from the $3.3 million buyout under his current agreement.
However, if the university terminates Martin after April 1, 2023 — in either of his final two seasons — USC would not owe Martin a buyout.
The board of trustees also approved a one-year extension for top assistant Chuck Martin on Friday, which is tied to Frank Martin’s employment with the university and does not include a buyout agreement.
There has been local buzz about a potential coaching change in the men’s program since the Gamecocks’ season ended March 11 in the SEC tournament with a 6-15 (4-11 SEC) record. The whispers grew so loud that five members of Martin’s 2017 Final Four team spoke out in support of their former head coach, as did Staley and local politicians in the Columbia community.
However, neither Martin nor the university had addressed the situation publicly before Friday’s board meeting.
USC would have owed Martin a $6.5 million buyout had it parted ways with the coach after this most recent season. That figure had reportedly been a sticking point for the university as it has evaluated its options over the past month.
Hired in 2012, Martin, 54, just completed his ninth season as USC’s head coach and has compiled a 153-134 career record with the Gamecocks.
However, the Gamecocks have failed to reach the NCAA tournament in each of the subsequent years. Last year’s Gamecocks finished 18-13 (10-8) and were considered a bubble team that was likely headed for the NIT, although the Gamecocks still had an opportunity to improve their resume in the SEC tournament before COVID-19 abruptly cut the season short.
The pandemic loomed large over this year’s team, forcing USC to cancel or postpone seven games between December and January and shutting down activities three separate times. The Gamecocks went nearly seven weeks without practicing and then played just one non-conference game — a home win against Florida A&M — before moving into conference play.
Though the team never revealed which players tested positive for the coronavirus due to privacy reasons, Martin tested positive twice, including once during the season. Both he and assistant coach Chuck Martin missed the team’s Jan. 16 game at LSU due to positive tests. Starting junior center Alanzo Frink played just three games before doctors ruled him out for the season.
Throughout the season, Martin said that winning and losing came secondary to making sure his players were “at peace” throughout the pandemic.
▪ USC board approves softball, golf extensions: The board of trustees also approved three-year extensions for softball head coach Beverly Smith and men’s golf head coach Bill McDonald on Friday. Both contracts run through 2025.
