TONY BENNETT FOR SEVEN MORE YEARS!

I knew this was coming. We all knew this was coming. In fact, it was inevitable. But I still cannot express the joy I felt when I read the headline. This man has transcended our basketball program to the glory days we experienced (or those a little older than me experienced) 30 years ago.

His contract runs seven years through 2020-2021 with a base salary of $1.924 million (up from $1.7 million in his old deal). He has a $100k bonus for an ACC tournament title, a $100k bonus for a trip to the Sweet 16, and a $400k bonus for making it to the NCAA championship game. He also has a $1.4 million longevity bonus.

Here is his statement from the press release (from virginiasports.com):

"I love coaching at the University of Virginia and living in Charlottesville where the community has been wonderful to my family. I feel we are building something special here and this commitment by the University is another great step towards ensuring we continue to compete at a high level."

He brings everything you want in a coach. In terms of basketball knowledge, there is no question he's got it. Obviously the pack-line defense is his signature, and he coaches it to perfection. This season, we were 1st in the nation allowing only 55.7 points per game. Let me rephrase that - we had the best defense in the country.

But there are also little things he does as a coach that he doesn't get enough credit for. For example, we rarely question our offensive game plan, and when we do (see before Tennessee...), he can fix it. I don't remember the exact number, but we experimented with several starting lineups before we stuck with Perrantes, Brogdon, Harris, Mitchell, and Toby. And to have Anderson and Gill off of the bench too was huge. The starting personnel had little to do with his defensive philosophy. But he fixed our offense to the point where we had a +10.5 scoring margin per game - good for 19th in the country. To experiment so much and still keep everyone focused on the prize - the ACC regular season title - is truly an accomplishment.

I also want to emphasize his humility. My best reference here is the Syracuse game where we dominated the second half to secure our first outright ACC championship in 33 years. For those who viewed the game on ESPN, you could just watch him tearing up. The title meant so much for him. It was not just about his success as a coach, but what it meant to his team and everyone in the UVa community. We had been waiting for so long, and the TEAM delivered.

I sat in on the Syracuse post-game press conference, and let me tell you, everything about the man is genuine. Sometimes, at least with me, you see people that come across as idols on television, but when you see them in person, you question your previous judgment. I have felt this with NASCAR drivers and several professional football players. But with Bennett, you could hear the sincerity in his voice and feel the humility in his answers. He's a true class act.

Now that he will be content for a few years with his new extension and the extension of his assistants, I see no reason for the program to falter. Will we win the ACC regular season and tournament championship next season? That's tough to tell. It depends a lot on how the freshman step into Harris and Mitchell's vacant roles. But I would be absolutely shocked if we fell out of the top three or four in the ACC. Anything less than top four in the ACC would be underachieving (when's the last time we could say that with a major revenue sport?).

Thank you and congratulations, coach. Let's hope there will be many more nets to cut down in the years to come!