Baseball: Robichaux extends contract with UL

Joshua Parrott • jparrott@theadvertiser.com • October 29, 2010

Tony Robichaux won’t be leaving his post as UL’s baseball coach anytime soon.

The University of Louisiana System Board of Supervisors approved a recommendation last week to extend Robichaux’s contract by 57 months through June 30, 2015. His contract was set to expire after the 2011 season.

Under the new agreement, effective Oct. 1, Robichaux’s annual base salary will be bumped to $120,000 – an increase of $16,000 – to keep him as the highest-paid baseball coach in the Sun Belt Conference.

Robichaux, who has coached the Ragin’ Cajuns since 1995, will also receive a $5,000 auto allowance and allow for additional income from all camps and equipment deals.

UL athletic director David Walker requested the contract extension after the Cajuns went 23-4 in the second half of last season – including a 17-1 league mark – to win a share of the Sun Belt title. UL advanced to the Austin Regional, where the No. 3 seed Cajuns upset No. 2 seed Rice.

"We had been talking about the future of his contract with it set to expire next year," Walker said. "I wanted to ensure that the program stayed stable. I talked with Tony about the possibility of extending his contract, and he was in agreement.

"He wants to be here, and we want him to be here, so everything worked out fine."

Robichaux has posted a 577-382-1 record in 16 seasons with the Cajuns, including four Sun Belt championships, eight regional appearances, two super regional berths and one trip to the College World Series.

After this past season, Robichaux was named the American Baseball Coaches Association’s South Central Regional Coach of the Year for the third time during his tenure with the Cajuns.

Robichaux, once a pitcher for the Cajuns, has a career record of 840-559-1 as an NCAA Division I head coach including his eight years at McNeese State.

Given the length of his contract extension, Robichaux should be able to coach his youngest son, Notre Dame senior pitcher Austin Robichaux, in college.

The younger Robichaux verbally committed to the Cajuns over the summer and plans to sign during the NCAA’s early signing period from Nov. 10-17, although he could get picked in next summer’s Major League Baseball first-year player draft.

"I was glad because this is where I want to be and a community I want to coach in," Robichaux said of his contract extension. "The fans and the community have been great to me and my family and to this program. Our goal now is to continue to be successful and help this program continue to grow."

In his new deal, Robichaux will also receive a $10,000 bonus if the Cajuns win the regular season or conference tournament championship or make an NCAA tournament appearance. He would earn additional bonuses for reaching an NCAA Super Regional ($15,000) and the College World Series ($20,000) and by winning the national championship ($25,000). The amount of that compensation would be paid for the highest achievement in any year.

Robichaux will also get a $2,000 bonus if the baseball team compiles a 3.0 grade-point average. The same amount will be paid if the team has a graduation rate of at least 60 percent. The team must also have an average of at least 925 on the NCAA’s Academic Performance Rate (APR) for both of those bonuses to be paid.

He will receive bonuses for being the Sun Belt and/or Louisiana Coach of the Year ($3,000), South Regional Coach of the Year ($4,000) and National Coach of the Year ($5,000) and if UL’s average paid home attendance is at least 2,500 ($2,500).