Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, April 3, 1990                   TAG: 9004030174
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: HUNTINGTON, W.VA.                                LENGTH: Medium

ALTMAN LEAVES HERD FOR KANSAS STATE JOB

Altman will replace his former boss Lon Kruger, who is leaving Manhattan, Kan., after four years to become head coach at Florida.

Altman said Monday he had been approached by other schools interested in hiring him, but wouldn't discuss leaving Marshall until Kruger called Sunday to tell him about the Florida job.

"I had spent three years at K-State," Altman said. "Obviously, that meant something to the people at K-State."

He said he agreed Monday morning to take the Kansas State job.

"I haven't signed anything yet," Altman said. "Verbally, we reached the decision this morning."

Kansas State athletic director Steve Miller said he talked to several candidates Saturday night and Sunday, "but Dana was the front-runner."

Miller said he wanted a coach who was familiar with the school and area because the spring signing period for high school recruits begins next week.

"Every time I tried to think of a reason not to hire him, I thought of another reason to hire him," Miller said of Altman.

Contract details remain to be worked out, but Miller said Altman probably would receive a five-year contract with a base salary of about $80,000 a year, plus incentives for NCAA Tournament appearances, income from a summer camp and money from radio and television shows.

Altman said he wanted to talk to his Marshall assistants about following him to Kansas State if one of them doesn't get the Marshall job.

Marshall athletic director Lee Moon did not immediately return phone calls to discuss potential candidates for the Thundering Herd job.

Altman came to Marshall in April 1989 after the school forced Rick Huckabay to resign because of NCAA violations. The other finalists for the Herd job were VMI head coach Joe Cantafio, South Carolina assistant Eddie Payne and Iowa assistant Rudy Washington. Washington on Sunday was hired as head coach at Drake.

Altman guided the Herd to a 15-13 record and a second-place finish in the Southern Conference regular-season standings. But the program was placed on two years probation by the NCAA last month for rules violations committed under Huckabay.

Altman said the probation played no part in his decision to return to Kansas State, located 100 miles from his hometown of Wilber, Neb.