A big loss for Temple: Staley quits for S.C.

0 Comments | Philadelphia Inquirer, The, May, 2008 | by Mel Greenberg and Frank Fitzpatrick Inquirer Staff Writers

Dawn Staley, who carried the American flag at the 2004 Olympics and proudly bore the banner of Philadelphia sports as a socially conscious women's basketball legend, left Temple University for South Carolina yesterday, in the process leaving an enormous hole in both her hometown and the university.

The North Philadelphia-born Staley, 38, agreed to a five-year deal to coach at the University of South Carolina that will pay her $650,000 annually, with a base salary of $250,000. The contract will be formally approved by the university's board of trustees on Saturday, just before a news conference introducing her in Columbia, S.C. Staley could not be reached for comment, but according to a source familiar with the negotiations, she has family in South Carolina and was eager to...