Jerome Tang, Kansas State agree to contract extension through 2029-30: How he earned the deal

Fresh off a trip to the Elite Eight, Kansas State and men’s basketball coach Jerome Tang agreed to a contract extension through the 2029-30 season on Monday. Here’s what you need to know:

• Tang will make $3 million in the 2023-24 season and will receive a $100,000 increase to his salary in each remaining contract year. He will earn a base salary of $3.6 million in 2029-30.
• He became the 11th first-year men’s coach since 1996-97 to lead his team to the Elite Eight.
• Tang, 56, was the Naismith Coach of the Year and Big 12 Coach of the Year in 2023.

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

Tang earned an extension

Tang far surpassed expectations in his first year and he has since proven that he can recruit at a high level, a sign that what he accomplished already was not just an anomaly. With the addition of a top 25 recruiting class along with one of the best transfer classes — highlighted by Tylor Perry and Arthur Kaluma — Tang has on paper what looks to be another NCAA Tournament team. He quickly won over the fanbase and this is a move by K-State administration that will be universally applauded in Manhattan.

If Tang keeps it up, he will be a hot name in the coaching carousel in years to come, and that’s the bigger piece of this deal: the buyout. K-State was smart to add a lofty buyout to Tang’s deal, starting with $6 million if he leaves anytime before April 30, 2024 and then dropping by a million dollars each year as the deal progresses. This proves that both sides are motivated to keep this partnership going. — Moore

Backstory

Tang was an assistant coach with Baylor from 2003 to 2022. The Bears won the national championship in 2021.

Tang led the Wildcats to a 26-10 season, defeating Montana State, Kentucky and Michigan State to advance to the program’s first Elite Eight since 2018. Kansas State lost to FAU in the Elite Eight.

What they’re saying

“What Coach Tang and his staff did in their first year here was phenomenal,” said Kansas State director of athletics Gene Taylor. “The run to the Elite Eight was remarkable, but what separates Coach Tang is his pure love of his players and the relationships that he builds with everyone that he encounters.”

“I have the best coaching staff in America, who work tirelessly to make our players the best they can be on-and-off the court,” Tang said. “I’m blessed and honored that I get to live life with these incredible men and women every day. I want to thank our players – both past and present – for their hard work and commitment to this program as well as their families for their support and trust with their most important asset.”

Required reading

(Photo: Brad Penner / USA Today)