After Al Golden took the Hurricanes to court in October 2018 seeking more than $3 million in additional money -- three years after his dismissal -- the Miami Hurricanes did a smart thing:
They made sure they protected themselves when they hired Manny Diaz to replace the retired Mark Richt just 2 ½ months later.
According to a UM athletic department administrator, the Hurricanes won’t owe Diaz his entire remaining salary if they fire him during or after this season or at any time before the conclusion of his contract.
Diaz’s five-year contract runs through 2023. He is due to make between $6.5 million and $8 million combined over the 2022 and 2023 seasons if he is retained for the duration of the contract, according to the source.
He could make close to $8 million over 2022 and 2023 if all incentives are met; incentives involving wins and academic benchmarks -- among other things -- are sometimes included in coaching contracts and Diaz’s deal is no different.
But if Diaz is fired and lands another job, the amount owed to him would be significantly offset by salary from his new job. It wouldn’t matter whether the new job is as a head coach or defensive coordinator or a position coach; the offset would still lower the amount of what UM owes him.
If Diaz is fired and remains unemployed through the end of the 2023 season (unlikely), he would be owed more than half of what’s left on his contract, but not the full amount or very close to it.
So if Diaz is fired -- whether he gets another job before the end of 2023 or not - UM would not need to compensate him dollar for dollar with what’s left on his contract.
Diaz’s job is likely safe for the remainder of 2021, unless there are several more embarrassing or lopsided losses, which could conceivably prompt an in-season dismissal.
If UM wins the Coastal Division, it’s certainly conceivable - if not likely - that he could even receive a contract extension at the end of this, his third year in the job.
In recent weeks, UM athletic director Blake James has declined all local interview requests to discuss the state of the football program or where Diaz stands.
As for Golden, a federal judge last September dismissed his lawsuit against UM, ruling that the school owed Golden what he had been paid when he was fired (a $2 million buyout) and not the additional millions he sought in the breach-of-contract lawsuit.
