Five Takeaways from Chad Weiberg’s News Conference Following Mike Gundy’s Dismissal

STILLWATER — In my decade or so of covering Oklahoma State athletics, I have never seen the amount of media in the Gallagher-Iba Arena theater room as there were in there Tuesday afternoon.

After meeting with Mike Gundy earlier in the day, OSU athletic director Chad Weiberg took to the podium to discuss why OSU and Gundy have parted ways after a 21-year tenure as the Cowboys’ head coach.

Hear are five takeaways about what Weiberg discussed.

1. There Was No Perfect Time

There probably weren’t many surprised that OSU and Gundy parted ways this season, but the timing was a little jarring.

Gundy was fired on a Tuesday, a day after he held his weekly news conference and coaches’ show and just days before the Cowboys take the field in their Big 12 opener against Baylor.

“I’ve not yet seen when is a good time or perfect time to do something like this,” Weiberg said. “There’s no such thing. This is a hard thing to do, and there’s consequences with however you do it. But I felt like in this case we needed to do it now so we could position the program to move forward in the future. …

“There’s a lot of steps and it was more important for me to get those things right than to hurry up and make the decision. It was just about what was in the best interest of moving the program forward in the long term. And I get that there’s things right here in the here and now, this week, today, tomorrow, but we also have to be looking at what’s better for the program over the next year, two years, five years.

2. There Were No Talks of Buyout Reduction

It sounds as if Mike Gundy will earn the full $15 million he is owed for his buyout.

That number wouldn’t have changed at any point this year or next unless Gundy agreed to a reduced buyout. Weiberg said Tuesday that wasn’t part of the discussion and that OSU will honor Gundy’s contractual obligations. Weiberg also said he did not seek donor support for the buyout.

“It’ll come out of just our revenues, our operating budget, those sorts of things,” Weiberg said. “No, it’s not a small amount of money, especially today when we’re trying to do revenue sharing and all of those things. But, it is just part of it, and we will honor our contractual obligations.”

3. How OSU Football Will Operate for the Rest of the Season

Gundy’s duties weren’t entirely dropped at the feet of one man.

For the rest of this season offensive coordinator Doug Meacham will be the interim coach while strength coach Rob Glass will be in charge of off-the-field aspects of the job.

“Best way I can put it is, kind of any thing between the lines will be Coach Meacham, and everything outside the line will be Coach Glass’ responsibility,” Weiberg said. “So I think that’s a great combination, and obviously with Coach Glass, we have somebody that’s been here as long as Coach Gundy has been. Knows the program inside and out, and I have a lot of trust in him. I think he’s got the trust of the entire football operations.

“And I think what that does is allow Coach Meacham in this time to focus on the team and not be worrying about all the myriad other things that’s part of a football coach’s duties and responsibilities these days, and that’s enormous, right? All the different parts that are involved with that. So right now because we are in the season and things are moving, I wanted to make it to where Coach Meacham could focus on the team, game planning for upcoming Baylor and Arizona next week, and those kinds of things, and not be worried about all the other moving parts. Coach Glass has that covered.”

4. Weiberg Confident in OSU’s Financial Backing

Financial backing has never been as important in college athletics as it is now, and with OSU spending $15 million on Gundy’s buyout plus however much more it takes to pay the assistant coaches who just got to OSU this season, many were left wondering the financial support OSU has to make such moves.

It doesn’t sound as if that is a concern for Weiberg.

“What I am extremely comfortable of is that we are resourced at the level that we need to be resourced at,” Weiberg said. “This is not an inexpensive football team that we have on the field this season. I feel really good about the investment that we have made here. I feel great about the support that we have here. …

“I go back to we aren’t lacking for support. I know there are people who think that we are. But this is not the 1980s OSU. We have come a long, long way from then. I would invite any of you to see how many other schools have 123 suites in the football stadium. Something that was unfathomable right, back then.”

5. Weiberg Is Still Without Contract

Weiberg has been working without a contract since the end of June, and he said Tuesday that hasn’t changed.

When asked whether his contract has been sorted, Weiberg said “We’re not here to talk about my deal.”

He then elaborated.

“No, that is not something that’s completed and that’s something that I’m not worried about at this time,” Weiberg said. “I feel very good about where I’m at, I feel great about my relationship with President (Jim) Hess and his leadership of this university. Feel great about our board and the support from the board. So I’m not worried about that.”

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