UCLA, Hazzard Agree on Multi-Year Contract

Despite an ongoing National Collegiate Athletic Assn. investigation into possible recruiting violations by the basketball program, UCLA Athletic Director Pete Dalis announced Thursday evening that he had reached an agreement with Coach Walt Hazzard to extend his contract.

Terms of the contract were not announced, but Dalis said it was a multi-year deal. Dalis said a contract had not been signed but that the two parties had reached an agreement in principle, and it was believed that the number of years on the contract was one of the details yet to be worked out.

Hazzard had one year remaining on his existing contract. He signed for three years when he replaced Larry Farmer in 1984 and was given a one-year extension after taking the Bruins to the NIT and finishing with a 21-12 record in his first season.

There had been speculation that UCLA would hold off on an agreement with Hazzard until the NCAA question was resolved. Today was the original deadline for UCLA to answer the NCAA’s inquiries, and Dalis said Monday that he was not sure that a deal with Hazzard could be worked out before that deadline. On Wednesday, the school was granted a two-week extension for submitting its answers.

Dalis said Hazzard was offered a contract extension because of the Bruins’ success last season. UCLA won its first Pacific 10 title in four years, and Hazzard was voted Pac-10 Coach of the Year.

In making the announcement, Dalis said: “Walt did an exceptional job this year, and we are rewarding him for what he has accomplished. We have an agreement in principle, but we have yet to finalize some of the terms.

“Walt has done a fine job of re-establishing the winning tradition here at UCLA.”

Hazzard has a three-year record at UCLA of 61-33. In his second season, the team finished 15-14.

UCLA had a record of 14-4 in the conference last season and an overall record of 25-7. The Bruins also won the first Pac-10 tournament, which was played at Pauley Pavilion. The Bruins won their first game in the NCAA tournament, defeating Central Michigan, but were eliminated in the second game by Wyoming.

Hazzard, 45, played on UCLA’s first national championship team in 1963-64.

After playing in the NBA, Hazzard coached two seasons at Compton College and then two years at Chapman College.