Last season’s march through the men’s NCAA Tournament put Arkansas back on the map with a series of not-since-when achievements: the program’s first time in the second round since 2017, first time in the second weekend since 1996 and first time in the Elite Eight since advancing to the national championship game in 1995.
Two interrelated factors threatened to overshadow Arkansas’ postseason run.
For one, the surge under second-year coach Eric Musselman coincided with high-profile job searches at programs such as Indiana and Texas. Second, the Razorbacks’ deep tournament push came with Musselman tied for 11th in pay, not including reductions taken due to the pandemic, among the 13 SEC head coaches at public universities.
With the Razorbacks on the rise and Musselman’s name raised in connection with multiple Power Five openings, updating this contract became a heightened priority for an athletics department with immense expectations around men’s basketball: “It’s a sport that we feel like we can win a national championship in,” athletics director Hunter Yurachek told USA TODAY Sports.
“At the end of last season, Eric was paid in the lower third of the conference. We felt like he deserved to be paid closer to the upper third of the conference,” Yurachek said. “We felt like an investment in Eric Musselman would pay dividends tenfold and felt very comfortable with where we were financially.”
Arkansas reworked Eric Musselman’s contract after he led the Razorbacks to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1995.
The Razorbacks’ financial commitment to men’s basketball is mirrored across the SEC, where a steady stream of revenue for member schools has pushed coaching salaries to the top of the Power Five. Twelve SEC public-school coaches are making at least $3 million during the 2021-22 year, the most of any conference. In…
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