Report: WVU, Former AD Shane Lyons Agree to Buyout

The dust has now settled on former athletic director Shane Lyons’ tenure at West Virginia University. Lyons and WVU have officially agreed to terms on his buyout and final payments after the university decided to remove him as athletic director last week.

Lyons’ buyout will land a $2.1 million, which is about roughly half as much as some were suggesting it could be upon the news of his termination. The Parkersburg, West Virginia native will also receive $312,000 for incentives he earned this year.

Initial reports claiming Lyons’ buyout would be closer to $4 million, or exactly $3.7 million, were based on the details in his contract. Lyons’ deal paid him $895,000 in base salary for 2022 and then was set to pay him $931,000 for each year from 2023 through 2026.

One way for the university to have avoided having to pay Lyons is if there was found to be an undisclosed reason for the firing, meaning a violation of the law or willful misconduct. Nothing suggest that was the case, but WVU and Lyons were able to agree on the $2.1 figure for the buyout anyway.

Asti: Two Fatal Mistakes Led to Shane Lyons’ Downfall at West Virginia

Lyons was hired to return to his alma mater in 2015 as athletic director after most recently serving as the Deputy Director of Athletics at Alabama. WV Metro News’ Hoppy Kercheval reported that West Virginia University Gordon Gee met with Lyons a day prior to the news being announced and offered him an opportunity to stay within the athletic department as an associate vice president, to which Lyons rejected the offer. In Kercheval’s report, he then described the parting as “does not appear to be amicable.”

Just hours after the news of Shane Lyons being out as athletic director was announced, WVU Interim AD Rob Alsop met with the media to discuss the hiring process of the new athletic director. Alsop mentioned that the search has already been started and will conclude within the next 3-4 weeks.

Watch: WVU Interim AD Rob Alsop Talks Hiring Process For Lyons’ Replacement

Alsop says a factor in a candidate for a new athletic director will be someone that is innovative with the new world of college.