Fred Hoiberg did what some thought was impossible at Nebraska. Hoiberg brought not just one NCAA Tournament win back to Lincoln, but two in the first and second rounds and was one tough mistake away from a third and an Elite Eight appearance.
This time last year, some were calling for Hoiberg's job at Nebraska, and luckily, those people did not get what they wanted because without him, Nebraska doesn't have the season it had this year. Before the NCAA Tournament even started, Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen gave Hoiberg a huge three-year extension, and many questioned the timing of the contract.
Some wondered why Hoiberg didn't wait until he could have made history and then gotten more money. Instead, it was actually Hoiberg who wanted the deal done then, and Dannen talked about the importance of paying coaches when you can, not when you have to.
"I think one of the rule of thumbs when you're with your coaches is never wait until you have to," Dannen said. "When you know the coach needs to be extended, when you know the salary needs to be maybe adjusted to be closer to where you are at with the competitive nature of other coaches that are situation, you do it when you can do it."
“Coach wanted to get that deal done.”#Huskers AD Troy Dannen explains the process behind getting Fred Hoiberg a contract extension.
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Fred Hoiberg's extension keeps at home in Nebraska where he truly belongs
With the way Nebraska looked this season, there could be many programs that would want to try to lure Hoiberg out of Lincoln. Now, Dannen doesn't have to worry about that because Hoiberg is locked in.
While the extension could have looked like a bad idea before the tournament, it ended up paying off in a big way. If Hoiberg had lost that game and continued with the trend of never winning an NCAA Tournament game, it would have made Dannen look back. If the deal hadn't gotten done, it could have cost Nebraska so much more in the end.
Dannen said Hoiberg wanted to get the deal done, even with the possibility of programs having head coach openings. It is clear Hoiberg didn't have plans to go elsewhere, and Dannen made the right call getting the deal done when he did.