Bret Bielema came to Arkansas in December 2012 with a resume built on the simply not running what somebody else built into a ditch and is now trying to get paid for basically quitting on the job.
Now he’s gotten attorney Tom Mars on his side and they have sued the Razorback Foundation in Washington County for $7.7 million, the remainder of his buyout due.
And may open the door for an ugly battle that could drag out for awhile with depositions, claims and counter-claims for awhile.
If they don’t reach a settlement out of court.
Bielema is currently the linebackers coach for the New York Giants after being a bargain-basement coach for New England for a couple of seasons.
The Foundation’s attorney, Marshall Ney, sent a response Friday afternoon to 40/29 News in Fayetteville:
“What I can share at this point before digesting the entire document is that the Foundation previously demanded that Bret Bielema return the $4,555,833.29 that had been paid to him prior to the Foundation’s discovery of his multiple material breaches of the agreement. It appears that Bielema filed suit in order to avoid being sued.”
The original contract stipulated the matter be litigated in Washington County, which is why the lawsuit was filed there
Exactly what comes out it will be interesting, but also in the lawsuit is using fired Tennessee coach Butch Davis’ job with Alabama as a comparison, according to Pete Thamel at Yahoo Sports:
Razorback Foundation president Scott Varady reportedly believed Bielema’s $150,000 salary as the Patriots defensive line coach — incidentally the maximum he was reportedly allowed to make without it coming out of his Arkansas checks — was below the market value of such a job and that Bielema was breaching the agreement.
In addressing those allegations, Bielema’s lawyers cited former Tennessee head coach Butch Jones, who was fired just a few weeks before Bielema. Bielema pointed to his salary being far larger than Jones’ corresponding income as an analyst and assistant at Alabama, with no complaint from Tennessee.
So, let’s start counting now. There are now multiple SEC and NFL teams involved in the lawsuit.
