Houston chairman confirms $18 million offer to Kelvin Sampson

The Houston Cougars were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night in the Sweet 16, but the school has not lost any faith in coach Kelvin Sampson.

Tilman Fertitta, the chairman of the Houston Board of Regents, confirmed that the team has made an $18 million offer to Sampson in a bid to keep him from moving to Arkansas.

.@UHouston Board chairman @TilmanJFertitta on Kelvin Sampson now that UH has offered him $18 million over 6 years: "I'm sure Kelvin's thinking about it & looking at his options.I sure hope he doesn't want to go to Arkansas..Fayetteville's a great place but it's not Houston,Texas" pic.twitter.com/uqrlEPZNP5

— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) March 30, 2019

It’s easy to see why the Cougars would be so eager to retain Sampson. He’s helped revive the Houston program, and his players clearly think highly of him. If Houston can pay power conference money, they may just have a shot.