Amid speculation UK wide receivers coach Tee Martin would be leaving his job for a position at another school, UK head coach Joker Phillips announced Saturday that Martin had been signed to a contract extension and will assume the added title of passing game coordinator.

“I’m elated, so emotional and so excited about the feeling of being wanted,” Martin said. “The work begins here and I look forward to it.”

Martin said that some schools–who he would not name– did express interest in hiring him, but that no formal interviews took place.

“I remained loyal to my boss, and the moment I heard something, he heard something,” Martin said.

Although Martin will be given a new title, much of his job description will remain the same. Phillips and offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Randy Sanders, who Martin played for during his collegiate career at Tennessee, had already discussed expanding Martin’s duties throughout the season.

For Phillips, keeping Martin on staff and staving off the “piranhas” interested in luring him away, was a key to continuing his vision of building a championship contender at UK.

“(Martin) is a guy who will be a coordinator in time, he will be a guy who is running his own program soon,” Phillips said. “We felt that for him to continue to progress his career, it was time for us to give him the title of passing game coordinator.”

In addition to the new title Martin will receive, he will also be receiving a pay raise, though Phillips would not specify the details of the contract.

Phillips said shelling out the extra money was worth it considering the “huge impact” Martin had in his first year in Lexington.

“We do what we have to do to keep our coaching staff intact,” said Phillips, who also thanked UK athletic director Mitch Barnhart for his commitment to building the UK football program.