Coaching contracts. A casino conflict. A hungry horse. Newspapers nosedive.
7/31/2024The salaries of state employees are public information, and, to the surprise of some and the unsurprise of others, coaches from Iowa’s three state universities continue to be some of the highest-paid state employees.
The UNI men’s basketball Head Coach Ben Jacobsen has won more than 300 games with the Panthers since 2006, making him the all-time leader in wins for the team.
Jacobsen’s base salary of $400,000 has not changed since his 2015 contract. Section 25 of his contract states that, if Jacobsen is not among the top three coaches of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) in guaranteed compensation (based on numbers provided by the MVC), Jacobsen has the right to ask for the contract to be renegotiated. In the first addendum to Jacobsen’s contract, Article 1 states that Jacobsen had accrued vacation time valued at $126,921.60. Upon his departure from UNI, he would be paid that amount. Jacobsen also has bonuses in his contract for key wins. A Final Four appearance would pay $100,000.
Alex Teubel has been the head cross-country coach and an assistant track and field coach for UNI since 2022 after being an assistant with the program since 2016. Her salary has gone up from $40,000 to $45,540 after signing an extension in April 2024, which will see her remain as the head cross-country coach until June 2026.
The resurgence of Iowa State’s football program has largely been thanks to its defense, headed up by defensive coordinator Jon Heacock, who followed Matt Campbell to the Cyclones in 2015. Heacock signed a new contract in March 2024, taking his employment to January of 2026. His salary during that time will be $1.2 million. Heacock is eligible for several bonuses, including $100,000 for winning the National Title.
Iowa State wrestling head coach Kevin Dresser has had a few amendments to his contract, which was originally signed in February 2017. Dresser’s salary has gone up from $325,000 to $350,000 since 2020. He has several performance incentives, including $100,000 for winning the NCAA wrestling tournament team championship.
Big change is coming for the University of Iowa women’s basketball program. Caitlin Clark has been mounting a rookie of the year campaign in the WNBA, and program legend Lisa Bluder announced her retirement. And now, the Jan Jensen era begins. Jensen had been an assistant at the program since 2000. Now taking the reins as head coach, her starting salary will be $850,000 and can increase depending on the team’s performance: 6% if the Hawkeyes qualify for the NCAA tournament, 8% for advancing to the second round, 10% for the third round, and 15% if the team advances to the Elite 8 or beyond. She would receive $100,000 for a NCAA Championship. Jensen has the chance at two employee-retainment payments. If Jensen is still the head coach as of August 2026 and August 2028, she will receive $100,000.
Tom Brands has been leading the Iowa wrestling team as head coach since 2006, bringing a great deal of success to the program in that time. His contract will see him continue that reign until June 2029. Brands’ salary is currently $700,000 and will continue to increase each June by $25,000. His salary by the end of this contract will be $800,000. Brands can receive $50,000 for winning the NCAA National Championship, something he has accomplished four times during his tenure. …
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission is in the process of reviewing an application for a casino license for a facility in Cedar Rapids from Peninsula Pacific Entertainment (P2E) and the Linn County Gaming Association. The applicants say a casino in Cedar Rapids will bring jobs and a boost to the local economy, and they say they will contribute 8% of the revenue to nonprofits in the city, an estimated $5-7 million a year.
Gary Thelen, a retired school teacher from West Des Moines and an avid gambler, is one of the few who attends the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission meetings. At the July 8 meeting in Altoona, he made a brief historical presentation.
Thelen pointed out that the most contentious issue the Commission faced over the years has been the expansion of gambling.
“There were six studies that I can remember concerning this issue. Finally, some years ago, a previous Commission decided to cap the number of state-regulated casinos at 19. That’s in addition to the four federally regulated casinos. So, we have 23 casinos in a state of only 3.2 million people. It was also determined than any new casinos would be considered only if they brought in new business and did not cannibalize business from existing casinos.”
Thelen said this creates a problem for Linn County and Cedar Rapids.
“Linn County wants a casino and is about to make its third application. … The first vote to approve gambling in Linn County was in 2003. It failed. As a result, people who would have invested money in a Cedar Rapids casino looked elsewhere, like Riverside, Clinton and Waterloo. That gives us the situation that exists today.”
Thelen said Linn County voters in 2003 listened to the wrong people and defeated the gambling measure.
“Now, it’s too late to correct that vote,” he said. “I have nothing against the people of Linn County, but they have to accept the consequences of their 2003 negative vote.”
Thelen’s tirade caught the attention of KCRG channel 9 in Cedar Rapids, which reported the official timeline for the commission to get through this process generally takes six to nine months, “so people in Cedar Rapids can get their answer about whether they’ll finally get their casino.” …
An underweight horse named Bruce has been gaining attention — and, recently, some weight. The malnourished horse had been providing carriage rides along Court Avenue and, according to at least one nearby resident, leaving its manure on a pedestrian bridge. Not too much manure, apparently, as Bruce was deemed to be hundreds of pounds underweight.
Bruce’s owner, Ramsey Zimmerman, was charged with livestock neglect, a simple misdemeanor, and the horse is now in the care of the Animal Rescue League of Iowa. …
If you are curious how many people still pay to subscribe to Iowa’s daily newspapers, here is your answer, per each newspaper’s most recent annual postal statements. Des Moines Register, 22,767; Cedar Rapids Gazette, 19,136; Dubuque Telegraph Herald, 11,540; Quad City Times, 7,605; Waterloo Courier, 6,437; Sioux City Journal, 6,226; Fort Dodge Messenger, 5,025; Council Bluffs Nonpareil, 2,362; and Ames Tribune, 1,916. n
