I would think a competent Athletic Director would be interested in knowing the terms of the multi million dollar apparel contract the school is locked into for 12 years. Doesn't mean he has to go through it line by line, that's an attorneys job. However, a competent leader should always be looking for ways to increase revenue, especially when it comes to the apparel deal, which is the most high profile contract an athletic department signs.
First of all, the absurdly long original contract was signed on his watch. James should be acutely aware the terms of the deal unless he delegated the negotiation and signing of one of the most important contracts the department has (in which case he would have been derelict in his duties as AD) . Second, he should constantly be evaluating the cfb landscape to see what deals other schools are making. If Georgia Tech signs an apparel deal with Under Armour for twice the amount that Adidas is giving Miami, he would look like an even bigger chump than he already is.
Here's a fun fact, UM was the first university in the country to sign an exclusive apparel deal when it signed with Nike back in 1987. Not a coincidence that Miami was pioneering in cfb and winning championships at the same time, that's what happens when you have a competent AD. Now this may also come as a shock to your system - the BOT and school prez didnt really care about football way back then either. However, a visionary AD, Sam Jankovich, found ways to generate revenue to make up for the funds the BOT wouldnt give him (by coming up with the idea of partnering with an apparel company). We don't even need to have a BOT, school prez, and AD all in alignment like Herbie suggested. We just need a top tier AD (like Tom Jurich) and he will be able to work around the gaggle of incompetence that is the BOT.
