The Purdue Boilermakers appear to have found their man for the long haul, at least for the time being, as reports surfaced that the program decided to extend head coach Matt Painter’s contract. The deal is reported to be a three-year extension through the 2021-22 season. This is the second extension doled out to Painter, with the first being signed back in 2011 when he was on Missouri’s coaching radar.
Painter himself stated through text messages that the extension might not become official until later in the summer. The deal was later confirmed by senior associate athletic communications director Tom Schott, who also stated that a finalized deal would not be recognized until the Purdue Board of Trustees meeting, which is set to take place on August 25-26.
For the upcoming 2016-17 season, Painter will be making a base salary of $2.45 million. Prior to his extension, he led the Boilermakers to a respectable 26-9 season. The team managed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament as a No. 5 seed, but fell to 12th-seeded Little Rock 85-83 in a double overtime loss. This mirrored the previous season in which Purdue fell in the first round to Cincinnati, blowing another second-half lead late in the game.
In 11 seasons coaching the Boilermakers, Painter has amassed a 263-139 record while being named Big Ten Coach of the Year three times and a Big Ten Tournament title in 2009. Despite his record, it seems that the Boilermakers might be establishing a track record of wilting under pressure in big games, especially when it comes to the NCAA Tournament. But, Painter’s record places him among the top three winningest coaches in the program’s history, and as it appears no other viable options are available, they feel that his records warrant enough to extend him. His buyout could be in the neighborhood of $14 million, but the details of such and exactly how much Painter would pay for an exit out of this contract extension are currently unclear.
This new contract gives Purdue continued stability, and the program is very optimistic about its future, especially when it comes to their ability to draw in recruits. The Boilermakers are a consistently strong team in the Big Ten, and Painter, despite two straight first-round exits, has not given them any real reason to doubt him now.
