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Mike Gundy Explains Why He Has Not Signed His $8.3M Contract Extension

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When Mike Gundy did his annual Do-si-do with a different football team than the one he currently coaches, it came out that Gundy’s contract extension which was offered last year has not been signed yet.

Gundy and Oklahoma State agreed to a two-year extension this offseason, which would take him through the 2021 season. It was approved by the OSU Board of Regents in June. But that contract has not been signed.

Gary Shutt, university spokesman, said in an email Monday that Gundy has the revised contract but neither Gundy nor the university has signed it. (Gundy signs first, then the university signs, Shutt said.) Shutt said the university does not expect it to be finalized until after the season. [Tulsa World]

The offer was for two additional years (2020 and 2021) for $4.15 million per year. His current contract runs through the 2019 season. Gundy is set to make $3.9 million next season.

He was asked about why the contract has not been signed on Thursday, and his answer was a bit circuitous.

“In order for that to happen both parties have to come to an agreement, and that hasn’t taken place,” said Gundy. “It’s a pretty simple process. It’s not something worth commenting on. There’s no reason to hide it. There’s not really any reason to talk about it. Hopefully that can happen though.”

Gundy explained further.

“Just because we haven’t come to an agreement is not a negative,” Gundy said. “That’s just the business part of what we do. I love being at Oklahoma State. This is who I am, this is what I believe in, this is always where I want to be. But there is a small side to what I do that’s business. I would think at some point we would be able to come to what I would call a fair and reasonable agreement. I would look forward to doing that.

“I wish that those conversations didn’t have to take place but unfortunately they do. That’s just the way the world works.”

So Gundy and Co. did not agree on an extension for $4.15 million per year ($8.3 million total) even though it was approved by the Oklahoma State Board of Regents? OK.

Maybe he’s mad because there is no raise involved. Gundy will make $4.15 million during the 2019 season, and that is the same amount both years of the extension are worth. He is currently the 22nd-highest paid coach in the country even though OSU has the 12th-best winning percentage of any school in the nation over the last decade.

So this will be interesting. This offseason will be interesting. What if the contract is not signed, and Gundy goes into the 2017 season with just 39 games left on his deal? That would be pretty weird, right?

I suspect this will get worked out between now and the first game of 2017, but it’s definitely something to watch as Gundy’s tenure in Stillwater rolls on.

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