Memphis AD clarifies Hardaway's $2.6M pledge as conditional, not a direct payment to players

Memphis AD says Hardaway's $2.6M claim is conditional, not a direct player payment

University of Memphis athletic director Ed Scott said on Grind City Media's "Gary Parrish Show" on Tuesday that men's basketball coach Penny Hardaway's public statement that he contributed $2.6 million of his own money to this season's roster is conditional rather than a direct payment to players. Hardaway told The Field of 68 at Monday's American Tipoff in Tampa, Florida, that "we had $5 million and then I had to put $2.6 million of my own money in to try to build the roster up." Scott framed Hardaway's comments as an aspirational pledge tied to a fundraising shortfall, not money already in hand.

How the $2.6 million agreement was structured

Scott told host Gary Parrish that Hardaway asked for a $9 million revenue-sharing pool this offseason after the program posted an estimated $1.2 million shortfall in ticket sales and donations last season. Scott said he raised the pool to $6.4 million and that Hardaway then proposed covering the remaining $2.6 million himself. According to Scott, Memphis agreed to front the $2.6 million on the condition that Hardaway raises it back by the next fiscal year. Scott said he asked Hardaway what would happen if the fundraising fell short, and Hardaway replied, "I will put up my own money for whatever I can't raise."

Why Scott says the arrangement is not a violation

Scott pushed back against any reading of Hardaway's comments as an extra payment to athletes, saying Memphis has not received a $2.6 million check from Hardaway and redistributed it to men's basketball players. "That would be a clear violation of the (College Sports Commission) and the House Settlement, and we don't operate that way," Scott said. He said players are paid by the university, and that any portion of the $2.6 million Hardaway ultimately has to make up himself would be returned to the school rather than to athletes.

Hardaway's reported salary and the program's revenue-sharing budget

OutKick reported Hardaway is contributing close to his entire reported $2.9 million salary as he works to avoid a second consecutive losing season. Memphis set a $5 million revenue-sharing budget for basketball ahead of last season, the Tigers' worst since 1969-70, and Scott said he agreed to a $6.4 million pool for this season before Hardaway proposed adding $2.6 million. On3 and CBS Sports reporting cited by a secondary outlet put the program's 2026-27 revenue-sharing budget at $9 million, with football at $7 million and the total athletics allocation at $21.3 million.

What's next

Scott set next fiscal year as the deadline for Hardaway to replace whatever portion of the $2.6 million he cannot raise from outside donors. Memphis is scheduled to open its 2026-27 men's basketball season later this fall, with Hardaway's roster construction and any further American Conference or NCAA Tournament results functioning as the next verifiable milestones in the story.