LUBBOCK, Texas (Jan. 17, 2025) – South Carolina Track & Field standout JaMeesia Ford paced the Gamecocks in the opening day of the Corky Classic in Lubbock, Texas.

South Carolina won a pair of events on the first day, led by a new world-leading time in the women’s 400 meter sprint by Ford. The Fayetteville, N.C. native clocked 51.20 to win the event, posting the second best time in Gamecock indoor history. In addition, Ford’s time ranks first in the NCAA this season. Ford’s teammate, Zaya Akins, also posted a new personal best in the 400m, running 52.15 to place third overall in the event. Akins’ new personal best time also ranks third in the NCAA and is currently third in the world standings.

The Gamecock women competed in just two field events with Omaria Gordon recording a new personal best in the women’s long jump for the third consecutive meet. The freshman jumper posted a mark of 6.19m (20-3.75) for the seventh best indoor long jump in program history, finishing fifth overall.

South Carolina’s men’s team captured one win as well, as Channing Ferguson secured the title in the men’s long jump. The All-American athlete jumped 7.47m (24-6.25) for the win, recording the seventh best jump in program history and ranking 16th in the NCAA.

All three Gamecocks who ran the men’s 400m set new personal best times, led by Josiah Wrice who clocked 46.38 for the sixth best indoor time in program history. In addition, Wrice’s 400m debut currently ranks him fifth on the NCAA leaderboard.

The Gamecocks will return to action tomorrow in the final day of the 2025 Corky Classic. The first event for South Carolina will be at noon (EST) with the women’s 200 meter sprint.

Men’s Individual Results
60 Meters (Prelims)
19. Antwan Hughes Jr. – 6.77q
21. Anthony Greenhow – 6.80q

60 Meters (Semis)
18. Antwan Hughes Jr. – 6.76
21. Anthony Greenhow – 6.83

400 Meters
4. Josiah Wrice – 46.38*
10. Devan Crumpton – 47.04*
19. Jasauna Dennis – 47.44*

60-Meter Hurdles (Prelims)
10. David Warmington – 7.92q

60-Meter Hurdles (Semis)
15. David Warmington – 7.95

Long Jump
1. Channing Ferguson – 7.47m/24-6.25

Women’s Individual Results
60 Meters (Prelims)
9. Cynteria James – 7.40Q
13. McKenzie Travis – 7.42q*
17. Jayla Jamison – 7.46Q

60 Meters (Semis)
9. Cynteria James – 7.31*
11. Jayla Jamison – 7.35
17. McKenzie Travis – 7.44

400 Meters
1. JaMeesia Ford – 51.20*
3. Zaya Akins – 52.15*

60-Meter Hurdles (Prelims)
18. Kennedy Flynn – 8.66q

60-Meter Hurdles (Semis)
17. Kennedy Flynn – 8.66

Long Jump
5. Omaria Gordon – 6.19m/20-3.75*

Pole Vault
12. Lena Richardson – 3.76m/12-4
— Emma Stone – NH

* – denotes indoor PR

COLUMBIA — South Carolina coach Dawn Staley is the highest-paid coach in the history of women’s college basketball as of Friday with a new contract that takes effect immediately and will run through 2029-30.

Staley, who won her third national championship at South Carolina in 2024, will receive an annual salary of $4 million with a $250,000 increase every season and a $500,000 signing bonus that makes the total value approximately $25.25 million.

“I’ve never been driven by money at all, never, ever,” Staley said on Friday afternoon. “Money is the byproduct of your success and your ability to work hard and be successful in your space. I do think it represents what can be in other professions that women for whatever reason are not paid for doing the same type of work, for the same type of job and I think this is an example of what it can look like, feel like, sound like and I hope everybody is happy about it for what it represents.”

Before the new contract, LSU coach Kim Mulkey was the highest-paid coach at $3,264,000.

Staley’s salary was the third-highest among women’s college basketball coaches, according to the USA TODAY Sports database from March 2024 but both she and UConn coach Geno Auriemma were making $3.1 million in terms of total pay.

“I think what it represents is, we play to a certain standard and I do think when we are able to get a raise like this, it’s to your standard,” Staley said. “I don’t think anyone expects us to play lower than our standard and we haven’t. Rewarded is a hard work for me because it’s earned. When you’ve done what you’re suppose to do and well above what you’re suppose to do you should be paid accordingly.”

Although she said she doesn’t usually share this kind of information with her players unless they ask, she did talk about what a contract like this may mean to them down the line.

“There’s going to be a time in their lives where they’re going to feel like they’re doing a job and they are getting paid less,” Staley said. “How to handle those instances. It’s a fight no matter what, it’s a fight … it’s a fight to explain to people what your worth is. You have to do some comparisons with coaches here, and coaches in other spaces and it’s the way it is, it’s negotiations. Our negotiations as women are a little bit different because we are valued a little bit different but I think when it’s all said and done, it’s the same things you apply to this game … negotiations are a game … you go back and forth.”

THURSDAY NIGHT: How South Carolina women’s basketball freshman Joyce Edwards was difference vs Alabama

Staley said former athletic director Ray Tanner, who had been working as AD until a little over a month ago, played a huge role making her new contract happen and that current athletic director Jeremiah Donati came in towards the end.

“It took a while for it to happen, a long time and fortunately we got to this great place that makes me look good but it makes our University and athletic department look great in the grand scheme of things,” Staley said. “Ray Tanner did a great job, ran a hard bargain.”

On the men’s side, Kansas coach Bill Self was the highest-paid coach as of March 2024 with a total pay of $9,625,624. In March, South Carolina men’s basketball coach Lamont Paris was given a six-year deal that pays him $26.25 million over the life of the contract, or an average of $4.375 million per year.

“The board of trustees did something that is extraordinary because it really just doesn’t happen but I’m glad it’s South Carolina, our University and our board, that no matter what, we look good,” Staley said. “I’m glad I am the person to be able to handle it because I truly don’t care about the money, I do care about the principle of it. Don’t care about the money but it’s the right thing to do though.”

Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin

This past week, women’s college basketball experienced not just one but two events that will permanently change the landscape of the sport. On Wednesday, the NCAA approved units for the women’s NCAA Tournament, and on Thursday, the Department of Education ruled that revenue sharing with college athletes must comply with Title IX.

What are these two decisions, and how do they impact women’s basketball?

Units

Let’s start with the easy one.

The plan to implement units was announced last August, but it was not approved until Jan. 15.

Coaches have been asking for units for years. Previously, a men’s team earned money for simply appearing in the tournament, while women’s programs earned nothing, even if they won the championship.

In the wake of the scathing Kaplan report about the NCAA’s inequitable treatment of women’s basketball, the NCAA took several steps toward equality. 

It allowed the women’s tournament to use “March Madness” branding and expanded the tournament field to 68 teams, matching the men’s tournament. But the changes didn’t include what coaches wanted most – units.

As interest in the tournament surged, climaxing when last season’s South Carolina-Iowa championship game drew higher ratings than the men’s game, irritated coaches again wanted to know when their programs would get a piece of the pie. The NCAA and ESPN reached a new rights agreement for the tournament worth about $65 million annually. 

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It was a huge jump in revenue, although many still thought it was undervalued. Most importantly, it permanently ended the argument that the women’s tournaments weren’t making money.

Units are a little-known part of the NCAA men’s tournament. Teams earn a “unit” for each game that they play in the tournament (except the national championship game). Each unit is worth a certain dollar figure (it goes up each year, and was $2 million last year). That dollar figure is paid out over six years, and each conference distributes shares of the fund to its member schools.

It is important revenue for power conference programs and absolutely essential for small schools, who could see their operating budget nearly double with one tournament upset.

Units for women’s basketball won’t be worth as much as men’s basketball. The fund that pays out units will start at $15 million for 2025-26 and rise by $5 million for the next two years until it pays $25 million for 2027-28. After that, it will rise at about 2.9% per year.

A championship run like South Carolina’s would earn about $1.3 million next year.

Revenue Sharing

Revenue sharing is the veiled way the NCAA is referring to paying players. 

To recap, the House settlement paved the way for colleges to start paying players directly. The settlement included an annual “salary cap” of $20.5 million. The settlement did not include how schools should distribute that money.

Would football players get most or all of it? Would men’s basketball get the rest? Women’s sports programs were worried they might get shut out. 

On Thursday, the Department of Education issued a memo stating that revenue sharing is a form of “athletic financial assistance” and, therefore, subject to Title IX laws. 

Those laws are familiar to most as the requirement that athletic departments offer the same athletic scholarships to men and women in proportion to the gender makeup of the overall student body.

TLDR: On Thursday, the Department of Education said that schools have to offer equal payments to male and female athletes.

WIN TICKETS: Kim Mulkey and undefeated LSU are coming to Columbia on Jan. 23

That’s big for women’s sports like basketball, softball, and volleyball, which have large fan bases. It guarantees they will continue to be funded and at a level that will probably create even more interest.

Now for the huge asterisk: We still don’t actually know what these payments will look like, and there are already lawsuits challenging the implementation. There will certainly be more. 

But this is encouraging for women’s basketball coaches and players.

Discuss this article and issue on The Insiders Forum!