TO BELLOTTI FROM U OF O: BUY OUT OR BYE-BYE?

U of O President Richard Lariviere says he asked Mike Bellotti to leave the university after Bellotti told him about an opportunity for a job at ESPN.  But he stopped short of saying Bellotti was fired.  Lariviere said although the university had its highest football revenue ever this past season, the Athletic Department still needed ‘an individual with experience handling the financial and business aspects of a complex program”.  He said Bellotti did not have those credentials despite his coaching success, so it was agreed that Bellotti would leave.  Paying Bellotti 2.3 million dollars was fair, he said, based on a verbal contract Bellotti had–something Lariviere said would never happen again.  The money comes from private donors, and is not taxpayer money, he said.  The Oregon Justice Department and the Board of Higher Education are both looking into the matter.

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