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Rohrssen reverses field, stays with Pitt
Rohrssen met with Pitt vice chancellor Jerry Cochran and Dixon on Friday evening, and the trio ultimately came to a verbal agreement.
However, St. John's officials made one final appeal just past the midnight hour. The university offered close to $50,000 in incentives in addition to a $200,000 contract offer.
Rohrssen considered the proposal, but he ultimately turned down the money and a chance to go home for one primary reason -- Dixon.
"In the end, the history I have with and the respect I have for Jamie Dixon will keep me in Pittsburgh," said Rohrssen, 43, a Brooklyn native who went through an arduous day Friday, going back and forth on his future. "It's based on the fact that we've been together for a long time. He was a component of me staying last year."
Rohrssen becomes the highest-paid assistant in the Big East with a contract that pays him $175,000 annually, which represents close to a $40,000 raise. Dixon was instrumental in petitioning the Pitt administration to keep his top assistant, while Cochran ensured that Rohrssen would stay put for a second consecutive year.
After Ben Howland left for UCLA in 2003, Cochran asked Rohrssen to remain on the staff even though a head coach was not in place. Cochran also gave Rohrssen a salary bump of $50,000 that year.
Rohrssen's value as a recruiter can be seen in the number of New York City recruits who've contributed to the Panthers' rise in the college basketball world. Returners Carl Krauser, Chris Taft and Mark McCarroll helped Pitt to its third consecutive Sweet 16 this past season, and guards Keith Benjamin and Ronald Ramon, also New York City products, are on board for next season.
Rohrssen's decision to remain at Pitt preserves continuity on a staff that features three members of Howland's original crew -- Rohrssen, Dixon and Patrick Sandle.
Rohrssen said the St. John's opportunity piqued his interest, but he did not want to let things linger, in fairness to Pitt and St. John's, where he visited Thursday and attended a Knicks-Nets NBA playoff game with administrators.
"To weigh the personal advantages of each opportunity could become too long a process," Rohrssen said. "I believe to benefit all parties involved, the decision needed to be made so that both programs could move forward."
