Heading into his eighth season with the program and after winning his team’s first national championship, the coach said the historic deal he signed is “a reflection of the times” and that “the money is bigger in everything we do now. “
The athletic director added: “People are going to talk about how much money he makes, but he has a lot of money for this university. “
In fact, Jeremy Foley understood what the “head coach” meant to Gainesville and the Gators faithful in 1997, when Steve Spurrier became the sport’s first coach worth $2 million. Spurrier, to his delight, doubled the salary that Bobby Bowden had earned two years earlier. a deal that made the rival Florida State coach the first to hit the million-dollar mark with bonuses.
Today? Well, the $10 million annual contracts are, in Spurrier’s view, a “reflection of the times. “Mike Norvell of Florida and Steve Sarkisian of Texas have won extensions that bring them to $10 million this year. That’s what Alabama is paying Kalen. DeBoer for his first year in Tuscaloosa.
Speaking of Tuscaloosa, Nick Saban became the first $10 million secondary boss in 2017 when, adding in a $4 million extension incentive bonus, his salary skyrocketed to more than $11 million. After receiving less than $10 million in 2018 and 2019, Saban’s salary for 2020 is just north of $10 million thanks to bonuses (his $9. 3 million salary) he earned in leading Alabama to the national championship, his seventh (and final) record title.
Below is a look at existing school football coaches worth $10 million. Here is USA Today’s payout list for 2023.
Day signed a two-year extension with his alma mater in 2022, bringing his salary for that year to $9. 5 million. He entered the rarefied air of the $10 million club last year thanks to a $250,000 retention bonus and a 5. 25% pay raise. He won in the spring, the first of annual increases through 2028, the last year of the deal. With the retention bonus set to take effect Jan. 31 and a 5. 25% raise, his salary for 2024 would be just over $11 million. 45, he is 56-8 at Ohio State with 3 CFP appearances and two Big Ten titles.
Swinney signed a 10-year, $155 million extension in September 2022 that paid him $10. 5 million that year after earning $8. 4 million in 2021. The pact is capped at $12. 5 million in 2031. (His assistants, 3 of whom go north with $1 million, earned raises before this year. ) Swinney took over at Clemson after Tommy Bowden quit the 2008 season and in more than 15 seasons in Death Valley, the 54-year-old has a 170-43 record with two national titles and 8 ACC championships. .
Smart agreed to a 10-year extension in the summer of 2022 that will run through 2031, when his salary will amount to $12. 25 million. The 48-year-old assumed his position at his alma mater in 2016 after a stint of 8 seasons. as defensive coordinator for Saban, Ala. Smart is 94-16 in 8 years at the helm of the program. The Bulldogs won back-to-back national titles (2021, 2022), made an impression in 3 national championship games, and have two SEC championships under their belt.
Sarkissian signed a four-year extension with Texas in February. He reportedly earned $5. 4 million this year. Therefore, his salary for 2024 has almost doubled. It’s a deal that would keep the 50-year-old coach in Austin through 2030. Sarkissian led the Longhorns to a Big 12 name and a CFP appearance last season and took them from 5-7 to 8-5 to 12-2 in his 3 seasons in Austin. Between UT, Washington and USC, Sarkisian, who was CO of Saban, Alabama for two seasons before landing in Texas, has a 71-49 record as a head coach.
HOUSTON, TEXAS – Washington Huskies head coach Kalen DeBoer reacts ahead of the 2024 CFP. . . [ ] National Championship game against the Michigan Wolverines at NRG Stadium on January 8, 2024 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
In the wake of Washington’s CFP Championship Game loss to Michigan, there were reports that UW had submitted more than double DeBoer’s salary in 2023, or $4. 2 before bonuses. Of course, the 49-year-old hired through ‘Bama in January and will get $10 million in his first year on the sidelines of Tide. DeBoer, whose benefits come with $225 a month for his wireless service, brought with him a 104-12 record (also NAIA Sioux Falls and Fresno State) to Tuscaloosa. DeBoer 25-3 in two seasons at the UW.
After raising $7. 3 million last year, Norvell signed an extension in February that will pay him $10 million this year. He will get a salary of $150,000 that will accrue each year for the duration of the contract, which ends in 2031, when the 42-year-old coach will earn $11,050,000. Norvell is 31-17 with the Seminoles, adding a 13-1 record and an ACC name last season. He came to Tallahassee from Memphis, where he was 38-15 years old, earned a U. S. name. He led the Tigers to the New Year’s Eve Six Bowl. He has a 69-32 record in 8 years as head coach.
Kelly was lured to Baton Rouge from Notre Dame in 2021 on a 10-year, $95 million contract that will be capped at $10 million in 2031. This figure should be considered as minimal due to the $500,000 bonuses that come into play for each. full season he has left with the Tigers (payable every July) and to achieve bowl eligibility. Therefore, Kelly, 62, is necessarily at $10 million. He has a record of 283-103-2 in 33 years as head coach. at Grand Valley State (two D-II championships), Central Michigan (one MAC title), Cincinnati (two Big East titles), Notre Dame and LSU, where he is 20-7.
USC is a personal institution and has not disclosed the major monetary points of Riley’s existing deal, which was reached after the regular 2021 season. According to some reports/estimates, this would be a nine-figure deal in 10 years. Riley, 40, who spent five seasons in Oklahoma, has a career record of 74-18, going 19-8 at USC.