Auburn Puts Cards On The Table

By Jay Coulter
jccoulter@gmail.com

Auburn officials presented Tommy Tuberville with a new contract Friday evening. The deal includes an extension of two years to the existing contract and a raise of $200,000 annually through 2013.

The two-year extension would put Tuberville under contract for the next six years. The new deal gives him a raise of $1.2 million over the term of the agreement.

Next season Tuberville will make $2.8 million and in the sixth year his salary would move to $3.3 million. There was no mention of whether the buyout clause was lifted.

It’s believed that Tuberville requested that the buyout be eliminated in the new contract. There’s also no word on whether athletic director Jay Jacobs offered to increase the assistant coaches' salaries.

Tuberville now has a month to make a decision. This means he’ll get an opportunity to weigh an offer from Arkansas and possibly LSU should Les Miles take the Michigan job next week.

The situation is fluid to say the least. Whether or not Tuberville stays is very much up in the air tonight. The way the contract is structured certainly plays into the hands of Tuberville. He’ll have ample time to test the market without having to give Auburn an answer.

The coming days will be interesting. We’ll keep you updated.