san-diego-states-offensive-coordinator-receives-bonus-being-bad-job

San Diego State’s Offensive Coordinator Receives Bonus Thanks To His Punter

While we here at Outsider love college football with all our hearts, sometimes coaches get ridiculous contracts. That includes San Diego State’s offensive coordinator.

Coach Jeff Hecklinski runs the Aztec offense. This year SDSU had a solid season. Besides a couple of blemishes, like their season finale loss to Utah State, 46-13. However, with an 11-2 record heading into the Miami Bowl, there aren’t many complaints.

Now, get ready for this. The Aztecs have the indisputable best punter in the NCAA. The guy could kick a ball clear over them mountains, Uncle Rico style. Matt Araiza was selected First Team All-America by the AP.

Non-Power 5 players making first-team All-America is rare. It turns out it is so rare, SDSU has put in a bonus incentive for their coaches. Head coach Brady Hoke is getting $10,000 for his All-American punter. However, so is the rest of the staff, including the offensive coordinator, who is supposed to keep the punter off the field. Steve Berkowitz of the AP broke the news.

Not only is the OC getting a bonus, but it’s the biggest bonus outside of the head coach. $3,200 because his team had the best punter in college. It has a lot of folks asking…why? And, why shouldn’t San Diego State’s Araiza get a bonus payment? After all, he did kick those balls all season. After an Araiza punt, you just expect a touchback or to be planted inside the 10-yard line. There is no in-between.

This is just another example of the weird and sometimes bizarre bonuses that NCAA coaches can get in their contracts.

Fans Ask Why San Diego State Coaches Get Bonuses

There were a lot of folks wondering why the OC and why the other San Diego State coaches were getting bonuses. Look, if it were just the head coach and the position coach for the player, I’d understand. But, as one person put it on Twitter… “the defensive backs coach gets money for the punter being an All-American?” Yeah, he does.

John Silver said that Araiza better get a meal or something from his coaches.

“He gets a 10k bonus, the head coach because his punter was good? Imagine if Belichick got a bonus every time Brady won league MVP. That is ridiculous. Take the kid out for dinner.”

And yet another tweeter pointed out that this could be part of a larger issue that athletics has at the collegiate level.

“These are the same coaches (& AD’s) that will squeal the loudest when this type of bonus structure & $70-$100 million contracts lead directly to player unionization, as sure as New Years follows Christmas…’you made your bed.’”

San Diego State is paying out bonuses to coaches. But check out the leg on Araiza and tell me he doesn’t deserve to have a little extra thrown his way.