South Carolina football: Will Muschamp’s buyout makes him bulletproof

His record is going the wrong way at South Carolina, but a big buyout means Will Muschamp isn’t going anywhere as Gamecocks’ head coach.

The South Carolina Gamecocks had what could have been a launching point victory over 15th-ranked Auburn back on Oct. 17. But in two games since then they have been outscored 100-27 by LSU (52-24) and Texas A&M (48-3). So even in a tough year for college athletics, it’s easy to put head coach Will Muschamp on the hot seat.

Now into his fifth season at South Carolina, Muschamp’s record is 28-29 with a 17-21 mark in SEC play. In his first three seasons, he was 22-17 (12-12 in SEC play), with three bowl appearances. The high point was a 9-4 mark (5-3 in the SEC) and an Outback Bowl win in 2017. The Gamecocks went 7-6 (4-4 in the SEC) and went to Belk Bowl in 2018. Those look like salad days compared to right now.

The Gamecocks went 4-8 in 2019, and before the final two games, it was worth speculating on who might replace Muschamp. Losses to Texas A&M and Clemson followed. Over his last 21 conference games now, Muschamp is 7-14.

At around this time last year, Muschamp’s buyout ($19 million, according to The State) pretty much assured he’d keep his job. Does the situation look any different now?

A big buyout makes Will Muschamp bulletproof

In October, USA TODAY reported Muschamp’s buyout is still just under $15.4 million. That’s a consequence of the contract extension he got in December of 2018, taking him through 2024. South Carolina athletic director Ryan Tanner told the school Board of Trustees in September that his department could miss out on $58 million of a projected $127 million in revenue this year. That’s nearly half of projected revenue lined up to be gone.

So paying Muschamp $15.4 million not to coach is not plausible, even with the possibility of some offset if he takes a new job (which is unknown). And that leaves aside the cost to hire his replacement, and that coach’s salary going forward coming off a year of cuts and limits due to COVID-19.

After the blowout loss to A&M last Saturday, South Carolina Senate candidate Jaime Harrison offered to start a fundraiser to buy Muschamp out.

Only one of South Carolina’s four remaining scheduled opponents, 4-2 Georgia, has a record above .500 right now. So in theory, though surely not based on their last two games, it feels like the Gamecocks could beat one or more of the others (Ole Miss, Missouri and Kentucky). Losing out from here and finishing 2-8 seems like a more likely scenario. But that outsized buyout means Muschamp won’t feel even a residual draft from the hot seat this year.

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