Tom Herman, Houston Agree on New Contract: Latest Comments, Reaction

Tom Herman will remain with the Houston Cougars through the 2020 season while raising his annual salary to $2.8 million, the team announced.

Herman said how excited he is to be staying with the Cougars for the foreseeable future:

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My family and I are excited to renew our commitment to the University of Houston Football program. We live in one of the greatest cities, and combined with a Tier One University and with the commitments to our program, it provides a great atmosphere for a championship culture. We are thrilled, and we are completely focused on tomorrow’s American Championship and representing the City of Houston on the national stage once again.

"

Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle added Herman would get a $5 million bonus if Houston joined a conference with annual television revenue of more than $20 million per member. 

Bleacher Report's Bryan Fischer praised Houston for working so quickly to quell any rumors of Herman's departure:

Between his work with the Ohio State Buckeyes offense last year and then Houston's success this year, Herman looked poised to move to greener pastures in the offseason.

USC announced Monday that Clay Helton will take over head-coaching duties on a permanent basis. Even with that door closed, Herman still had potential opportunities at South Carolina, Missouri, Maryland, Miami and Georgia after Mark Richt's firing, per Mark Schlabach of ESPN.com.

On Nov. 19, Duarte reported that Houston was willing to pay Herman as much as $3 million annually in order to entice him to stay. That salary makes Herman the richest Group of Five head coach—surpassing Tommy Tuberville's $2.2 annual salary—but he'd still tie for 31st in the country in terms of base salary.

Signing an extension keeps Herman in Houston for at least one more season, but the Cougars must know it's likely only a matter of time before he accepts a job elsewhere.

A year from now, Houston might be in a very similar position, one where it has to fight in order to hold on to Herman. He was only in Year 1 of his five-year deal before the Cougars signaled interest in more than doubling his salary.

Herman's departure is far from a guarantee, though.

Chris Petersen stayed at Boise State for eight years—seven of which came after the Broncos' historic Fiesta Bowl win in 2007—before moving to Washington.

Gary Patterson also settled in at TCU for 12 years while the Horned Frogs bounced around the WAC, Conference USA and Mountain West Conference before ultimately landing in the Big 12.

Still, the Cougars will struggle to keep up with the traditional powers in the college football arms race. Their two most successful coaches before Herman, Art Briles and Kevin Sumlin, both took jobs in what are now Power Five conferences.

This time next year, LSU and Texas could be two of the more attractive openings. If that's the case, Herman could very well be on his way out the door should Houston have another good season.