The Wiz of Odds

Perkins' Vouchers Reveal Big Bills on Private Planes

When Kansas athletic director Lew Perkins steps down on Sept. 4, 2011, he will leave behind a lifestyle reserved for the rich and famous.

Perkins charged the athletic department more than $150,000 from July 2008 to May 2010 for 22 flights on university-owned and leased planes, according to a review of his travel vouchers by the Kansas City Star.

On one trip, Perkins flew from Lawrence to Columbia in an executive-style jet to attend the Jayhawks' basketball game against rival Missouri. Bill Self's defending national champion team took the bus.

There were 23 other private flights Perkins took in those 22 months — seven on boosters' planes, four cited on Perkins' vouchers without a cost and 12 that were reported on the expense reports of other Kansas staffers who joined the athletic director on a trip.

Perkins Had Front-Row Seat and Missed Ticket Scandal

Meet Lew Perkins, the athletics director at the University of Kansas. He was paid an astounding $85,000 a week in 2009, part of a package that was negotiated when he left Connecticut in 2003 to take over as the big bossman in Lawrence.

He made no apology for his salary when asked about it in April by the Kansas City Star.

"It is what it is," he said. "It was all based on when I got hired, negotiated from day one. ... It was all part of the deal of me leaving Connecticut to come here."

Kansas officials defended Perkins' salary, saying that the bulk of it came from general athletics revenue, including supporters' donations.

Many of those same boosters are now outraged after Kansas unveiled a report Wednesday that detailed the illicit distribution of more than $1 million worth of prime tickets to basketball and football games.

A group of six employees allegedly hatched the lucrative ticket-scalping scheme, and the news is expected to get worse. The FBI and IRS have ongoing investigations, and Yahoo! Sports reported that the scalping operation extends beyond Kansas to other schools, including Oklahoma.

'Equity Seat Rights' Take Hold in Kansas

Kansas is following the lead of California in entering the business of "equity seat rights," the latest marketing innovation that requires fans to pay big bucks in order to secure the best seats in the house.

Jayhawk fans who pay as much as $105,000 over 10 years will earn the right to buy guaranteed top seats at Memorial Stadium for the next 30 years. In return, the seats will stay locked in at 2010 prices. Fans will also be able to take a tax write-off for donating to a university.

The Chicago-based Stadium Capital Financing Group is behind the plan, and chief executive officer Lou Weisbach says it's a win-win for all involved.

"Even in difficult financial times, the price of the best seats in professional stadiums and university programs go up," Weisbach said. "This is the ultimate solution for the shortfalls universities are facing in their athletics programs."

Kansas is targeting fans interested in securing seats in the new 3,000-seat Gridiron Club, an addition to 90-year-old Memorial Stadium that will open for business in the fall. The club will offer cushioned seats, catered food, private restrooms and preferred parking. The university is hoping to cover $34 million in stadium renovations, with long-range plans of raising $200 million.

One problem: Jayhawk fans have not been receptive to the plan. Only $5 million of the $34 million has been raised.

Kansas A.D. Perkins Was Paid $85,000 a Week in 2009

Another sign that the end times are near.

Kansas athletic director Lew Perkins was paid $4.4 million in 2009, according to a report in the Kansas City Star.

Perkins' pay is the equivalent of $85,000 a week, and the athletic director made no apology for his compensation.

"It is what it is," he said. "It was all based on when I got hired, negotiated from day one. ... It was all part of the deal of me leaving Connecticut to come here."

Andrew Zimbalist, a sports economist at Smith College in Massachusetts, said of Perkins' compensation: "It's utterly outrageous. I can't believe he's worth that kind of compensation in the marketplace. It strikes me as a hideous compensation level."

Perkins was paid $648,281 in 2007 and $900,000 in 2008. Perkins' 2009 salary reflects a retention bonus, and his pay will revert to the paltry $900,000 this year.

Kansas defended Perkins' salary by saying that most of it came from general athletics revenue, including supporters' donations, conference revenue, student fees and other sources.

Come on, at Least Give the Guy a Chance!

Turner Gill will be formally introduced as coach of Kansas on Monday, but there's already a site calling for his ouster.

Fire Turner Gill started making the rounds Sunday, only hours after reports surfaced of Kansas' decision to hire the 47-year-old coach from Buffalo.

The site was registered Oct. 8 and lists an address of Athens, Ga., according to domain records. The administrator goes by the initials H K.

H K replied to an email but did not answer if the site was simply an angry reaction to the "resignation" of Mark Mangino.

Turner Gill Is Kansas' Choice as Coach

Turner Gill, who resurrected the Buffalo program in his four seasons as coach, will be introduced Monday as Kansas' new coach.

Gill, 47, is bringing Chuck Long and Carl Torbush with him, according to the Kansas City Star. Long, the former San Diego State coach, will serve as offensive coordinator under Gill. Torbush, currently the defensive coordinator at Mississippi State, will have the same position at Kansas.

The hiring of Gill drew this response from Star columnist Jason Whitlock, a former player at Ball State:

"As a black member of the media, I know what I'm expected to do today — shout that Gill's hiring as Kansas' new football coach is a bold step for college football mankind, a terrific hire by [athletic director] Lew Perkins and the culmination of Martin Luther King's dream.

"The problem is, unlike most of Gill's prominent supporters in the media, I've actually watched his Buffalo Bulls play numerous times. Never once have I been impressed. Not even on the night when Gill's Bulls ended my then-12th-ranked Ball State Cardinals' Cinderella season with a shocking 42-24 victory in the 2008 MAC championship game.