Following a buyout settlement with former Wildcat men’s basketball head coach Jerome Tang, Kansas State will save several million dollars.
After months of negotiations, Tang and K-State settled their dispute over an $18.7 million buyout following his firing in February for $12 million, The Mercury confirmed with K-State Thursday afternoon.
The former basketball coach, who opened Big 12 play with a 1-11 record, was fired midway through his fourth season “for cause” in February after publicly criticizing his players for lackluster effort in a home loss to Cincinnati on Feb. 11.
“These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform; there will be very few of them in it next year,” Tang said following a home blowout, a 29-point loss that stood as one of the 10 worst in program history.
“It means something to wear a K-State uniform. It means something to put on this purple … I love this place. They don’t love this place, so they don’t deserve to be here.”
Tang’s contract said K-State owed him $18.7 million if he was fired based solely on his record, but it said he would get nothing if K-State fired him “for cause.”
