(Memphis) Fresh off the Memphis Tigers’ 31 and five season, Josh Pastner is one of the most in demand head coaches in the country.
“My only focus is Memphis Tiger Basketball. My only focus is these young men and I am looking forward for next season,” Pastner said.
On social media, Twitter is a buzz because some are reporting Memphis’ boy wonder is wanted by USC, UCLA and a couple other schools.
Harold Byrd is a University of Memphis booster.
“I don’t think there’s another coach like Josh Pastner in the country and we’re very fortunate to have him. 31 wins this year in basketball, ended up being ranked 20th and he’s won over 100 games in four years,” Byrd said.
But not everyone is as impressed with Pastner’s resume. Sports radio host and sports writer Ron Tillery was not in town today, but said on the phone he looks at Pastner two different ways..
“When you look at his resume and the conference he’s played in and his relative lack of success in the NCAA Tournament, it surprises me. On the other hand, he is a young coach and he does recruit very well,” Tillery said.
Pastner’s coaching success will also likely have his pay going from around one-point-seven million dollars to nearly two million.
“Whatever monies Josh gets won’t come from the school. It will come from boosters and other economic sources. So, one really doesn’t have anything to do with the other. His base salary will remain the same and the athletic department will just find a way to raise the money,” Tillery said.
“Josh took over a program that was pretty much in shambles because the previous coach had left and taken all of the with him. So he came in and took over a program where the pieces were not there and brought it together,” Byrd said.
A Pastner pay raise would also put him in line with several other top coaches around the country and in case you’re wondering his predecessor, John Calipari, was making well over two million per year before he left to coach at Kentucky.
