Texas Tech's Leach expecting rally Tuesday
12:21 AM CST on Tuesday, February 17, 2009
By BRANDON GEORGE / The Dallas Morning News
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Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach has hired a media relations consultant to help repair public perception caused by his derailed contract extension negotiations, and she's helped organize a rally for him today.
Kim Davis of Lubbock-based Nomiss Communication said Monday that she expects several hundred people to assemble between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. in front of Tech's athletic offices at Jones AT&T Stadium.
The show of support will precede Tech's 5 p.m. deadline for Leach to accept its latest contract offer of $12.7 million over five years that would extend him through 2013.
"It is not a protest. It's all in support of Coach Leach," Davis said. "It's student driven and business-leader driven, just fans of Coach Leach who will be there to say, 'We love you' and 'We want you to stay.' "
Tech chancellor Kent Hance has said if Leach doesn't accept Tech's latest offer by today's deadline, he'd continue to operate under his contract that runs through 2010. Hance said Tech possibly could make another run at extending his contract after next season.
Tech officials and Leach's International Marketing Group agents, Gary O'Hagan and Matt Baldwin, have agreed in principle on compensation terms. However, negotiations have unraveled since Tech added four provisions Jan. 9.
The four points involve the guaranteed termination compensation Leach would receive if fired, the buyout amount he'd pay if he left early, a penalty for interviewing for another job without permission and who controls Leach's personal property rights.
Baldwin and Tech athletic director Gerald Myers declined to comment Monday.
Leach has limited his public comments during the 10 months of contract extension talks, often letting his agents speak on his behalf. But Leach, who has also stayed out of negotiations, has said he's always wanted to remain at Tech.
"My recommendation to him is he needs to shout that loud and proud," said Davis, who added that she's generally hired for crisis communications. "The only way you can understand what Coach feels is to hear directly from him."