Brady Hoke named new coach at San Diego State

Dec 16, 2008 - 10:56 PM SAN DIEGO (Ticker) -- Brady Hoke officially was named as San Diego State's new head football coach Tuesday, one day after he resigned from the same post at Ball State.

Hoke received a five-year contract worth $3.5 million to coach the Aztecs, who are reeling from the first 10-loss season in school history.

The announcement came one day after Hoke rejected a contract offer that would have made him Ball State's highest-paid employee.

Ball State president Jo Ann Gora said Monday that her school could not match San Diego State's offer to Hoke, who coached the Cardinals to a 12-1 record this season.

"When Coach Hoke told me that San Diego State had offered him a guaranteed package of $3.5 million over five years, I knew we had done all we could to keep him," Gora said. "In these economic times, we simply cannot reasonably match such a generous offer."

Ball State offered Hoke a base compensation package of $390,000, plus $60,000 in Mid-American Conference performance incentives and up to $255,000 in BCS and national incentives.

The Cardinals, who lost to Buffalo, 42-24, in the MAC championship game, will face Tulsa in the GMAC Bowl on January 6.

San Diego State, however, is hardly a nationally recognized program, and the Aztecs have not had a winning season since 1998.

Hoke will replace Chuck Long, who was fired after posting a three-year record of 9-27. The Aztecs were 2-10 this year.

Hoke posted a 32-38 record in his sixth seasons at Ball State, which cracked the top 25 this season for the first time in school history. The Cardinals were ranked 13th prior to the Buffalo game.