Over a year after “resigning” as head coach following his fourth season at the school, Houston Nutt‘s financial relationship with Ole Miss has come to an end.
Ole Miss announced Saturday that it had reached a one-time settlement with the former coach on the buyout spelled out in his contract. The agreement was reached late last year.
Nutt’s deal called for a buyout of $6 million payable over five years. With $4.8 million still remaining, the school and Nutt’s representation agreed on a one-time payment of $4.35 million.
Athletic director Ross Bjork said in a statement that the settlement, paid out of “athletic foundation reserves,” will save “over $550,000 when you consider time value of money and payroll taxes.” In fact, taxes seemed to be the overriding reason for the decision to pursue a settlement.
“In light of the changes in tax code for 2013 and beyond, we proposed an early completion of the separation agreement with Coach Nutt and we came to terms near the end of December, 2012,” Bjork said in the statement.
It was announced in November of 2011 that Nutt would “resign” at season’s end. He ended his time with the Rebels with a 24-26 record, including a 10-22 mark in SEC play. Included in that total was a 14-game conference losing streak to end his time in Oxford.
Nutt was replaced by Hugh Freeze, who led the Rebels to a 7-6 record in his first season and the first Egg Bowl win over Mississippi State since 2008. Freeze’s 2013 recruiting class is currently ranked No. 13 in the country.
As for Nutt, he was out of coaching and in the broadcast booth in 2012. He was mentioned as a candidate for a position on the Dallas Cowboys’ coaching staff earlier this month, although that didn’t come to fruition.