Final Taken: The Checkbook is Open in Nebraska

If we have learned something in the last 15 months at Nebraska under Bill Moos, the checkbook is open.

On Saturday, NU announced that new basketball coach Fred Hoiberg would earn $ 25 million over seven seasons, placing him third in the Big Ten Conference, just behind John Beilein of Michigan and Tom Izzo of Michigan State. .

To take another step, Moos also announced Tuesday that Hoiberg's badistant coach payroll will reach $ 1 million in 2019-20, making it the third largest Big Ten behind the Ohio State (1.02 million dollars) and Michigan State ($ 1.005 million).

Before this year, the Huskers paid $ 766,000 to their three basketball badistants, who ranked eighth in the conference.

"It's pretty competitive," said Moos about staff salaries. "It's a million dollars for the three badistants. It's certainly in the top two or three places of the Big Ten. "

It's more than Illinois ($ 900,000), Indiana ($ 890,000), Michigan ($ 880,000), Maryland ($ 825,000), Iowa ($ 700,000), Wisconsin ($ 660,000) and Purdue ($ 630,000) pay their three basketball badistants.

Nebraska's commitment to basketball is clear. NU wants to win, and they are ready to pay the big price not only for a head coach, but also for a staff.

"Thanks to my experience, you must have the best staff," said Moos. "We have teams of badistants in other sports. Basically, these are your recruits in the field. You can have the best X and O coaches in the country, but if you do not have arms and legs, it does not matter. You must have the best badistants, and that's certainly what we plan to do. "

The more than $ 50 million that Nebraska earns each year in the Big Ten does not hurt either. However, in 2017-18, the men's basketball program generated $ 19.54 million in sales and $ 7.98 million in expenses, generating $ 11.56 million. The figures for 2018 to 1919 should be similar, if not higher.

The Huskers ranked 11th nationally this year with 15,492 spectators. Everything is there for a commitment like this to materialize. You could not have said it before the Big Ten conference, when the NU played at the Bob Devaney Sports Center, which offered a limited number of extra seats and an average of 10,019 spectators in the last basketball season. ball.

"The myth that we can not succeed, I never bought it," Moos said. "We paid the big price and we did it in football too. We can afford to do it. I thought from the beginning that we had to get the best of ourselves. My coaches are basically from the Midwest, they have a good work ethic, a bit of snow does not bother them and they work hard. "

With the new Nebraska "Husker Air Fleet" program, Hoiberg and his staff will no longer be confronted with the use of private aircraft.

Moos told HuskerOnline that basketball staff would have access to private planes whenever necessary.

"Many," said Moos to the question of how much private plane access Hoiberg and his staff will have. "Fred never asked him. I offered it. "

The new Husker Air Fleet is a donor-initiated program set up last year to help offset the $ 971,000 spent on air travel, of which $ 700,000 is private.

"We are asking for about $ 1 million a year for our football, volleyball and basketball coaches to access talent pools," said Moos.

"We have set up this air fleet and (Hoiberg) will be on it tomorrow. He was working there today, he and Carol coming down from Chicago. It's a difference maker; it really is. "

There has been a lot of talk about modernizing Nebraska facilities in the coming months.

Moos addressed this issue Tuesday and said that a new $ 15 million golf facility on Innovation Campus appears to be at the top of the list of priorities.

"We are in discussion," said Moos about possible new facilities. "I'll have another (meeting) Thursday with the Chancellor. I really want to start golf. We really need it. I do not mean "only", but it's only $ 15 million. Now that all this is over, I can focus on the facilities thoroughly. "

So what about football? The Huskers are currently ranked in the bottom half of the conference in this category, and discussions on improvements have been announced as soon as possible.

Moos played down that Tuesday.

"It's on the list of conversations," Moos said of a new football facility. "I think in the end it's a possibility. I do not think it's an urgent and immediate need, but I always try to look between five and ten years. Honestly, I think that five years from now, it would be beneficial to have a similar system in place to participate in conferences of the best talent. "

We will see if this schedule is respected. I guess the staff of the football coaches expects a much faster evolution than five years later.