Kansas State has officially moved on from Jerome Tang, and now the real guessing game begins.
Whenever a job like this opens up, especially one with legit history and fan investment, the familiar names start circulating. This time, one of the loudest has been Brad Underwood, currently the head coach at Illinois and a former Wildcat himself.
On paper, it makes sense. Underwood played at Kansas State; he understands Manhattan, he knows the culture, and he has built a winner in the Big Ten and carries the kind of resume that would immediately stabilize the program.
But that is where the clean fit starts to get messy.
UNDERWOOD’S BUYOUT
Underwood’s buyout at Illinois would reportedly sit around $15.3 million if he left for Kansas State. If he jumped to another Big Ten job, that number would double. Either way, it is a ton of money to fork over, and that is before you even factor in what Kansas State may owe Tang.
Depending on how legitimate the “for cause” firing ends up being, Tang’s buyout could range anywhere from zero to roughly $18.7 million. Even if the Wildcats significantly reduce that number, it would still be a financial hurdle on top of whatever it would take to pry Underwood out of Champaign.
Could Kansas State make that kind of splash? In theory, sure, but it feels unlikely. Athletic departments do not typically stack massive buyouts on top of each other unless they are certain that it changes everything. Underwood is a proven coach, but Illinois is stable, competitive, and paying him well. There is no obvious reason for him to leave.
It feels far more plausible that Kansas State looks elsewhere. A rising mid-major coach is probably the direction the Wildcats look, but nobody could blame them for swinging for the fences with Underwood.
The Underwood chatter makes for fun message board conversation. In reality, the math probably sends the Wildcats in a different direction.
