• Loading stock data...
Saturday, August 2, 2025
Tuned In returns to NYC on September 16. Hear from the biggest names in sports media. Click here to get your spot

College Football Coach Salaries Rise, But Some Face Pay Cuts

Kent Gidley/ USA TODAY Sports

Head coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision are making more money than ever, but the pandemic has started to affect that. 

USA TODAY Sports’ annual review of coaches’ compensation found that the average total pay of FBS head coaches in 2020-21 is $2.7 million, a 1.1% jump since last season. But the pandemic is putting a dent in salaries with many coaches experiencing pay cuts. 

Alabama’s Nick Saban, who will make $9.3 million this season, is the highest-paid college football head coach in the country — a position he’s been in seven of the last nine years. 

Even though the pandemic has not inflicted any pay cuts on his salary, it has presented him with another challenge. On Oct. 14, Alabama announced Saban tested positive for the coronavirus and had to cede control to assistant coaches. 

He had been coaching during practice using remote technology, but he will be able to coach the Crimson Tide’s Oct. 17 matchup against Georgia after a third straight negative test.

Other head coaches have also been affected, albeit in a different way. Clemson’s Dabo Swinney — who’s the third-highest-paid head coach in FBS — took a $1.25 million voluntary pay cut due to the pandemic. Swinney is forfeiting his retention bonus along with a $250,000 raise in his contract which would go into effect next year. The extra cash could help Clemson for its 2021 budget. 

Jim Harbaugh of Michigan also accepted a 10% pay cut through the end of the current fiscal year. Michigan’s athletic department is projecting a $26 million deficit next year and with Harbaugh’s top-five salary, the pay cut should help the department power through the next year. 

Every public school head coach in the Big 12 and Big Ten has also accepted a voluntary pay cut due to the pandemic, whereas in the SEC only four head coaches out of the 13 public schools have accepted voluntary pay reductions.

In the Group of Five, only one public school head coach took a voluntary pay cut and in the NCAA Mid-American Conference or MAC only head coach has not.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Bengals Extend Stadium Lease After $350M in Public Funds for Renovation

The Bengals will stay in the 25-year-old stadium through at least 2036.
opinion

ESPN-NFL Deal Still Contends With a Wild Card: Trump’s Approval

Negotiations between the NFL and Disney have been ongoing for four years
Coco Gauff at New York Liberty

How the New York Liberty Became the Hottest Ticket in Town

Once banished to the burbs, the Libs are now Brooklyn’s marquee attraction.

Commanders Seal Stadium Deal As D.C. Approves $1.1B in Funding

The NFL team’s return to its prior home receives key political support.

Featured Today

Las Vegas sign

College Sports Embracing Vegas After Years of Cold Shoulder

The Big Ten became the latest newcomer to Sin City.
2000, Jupiter, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Montreal Expos pitcher Hideki Irabu in action on the mound against the New York Mets at Roger Dean Stadium during Spring Training
July 28, 2025

Dead Sports Franchises Are Alive and Well on Twitter

The Expos, Sonics, and Whalers have active social media accounts.
Limited Hype
July 27, 2025

Sneaker Reselling Was Once Easy Money. Success Is Now Complicated

Vendors need to evolve what they’re selling and how they do it.
HAPPY GILMORE 2. BTS - (L to R) Adam Sandler as Happy Gilmore and Rory McIlroy as himself on the set of Happy Gilmore2.
July 26, 2025

‘Cool As Hell’: How ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ Hooked Golf’s Top Stars

The process was “cool as hell,” Adam Sandler tells FOS.
Stanford

John Donahoe Taking Over Stanford Sports After Rocky Nike Tenure

John Donahoe will be Stanford’s AD after a four-year stint running Nike.
Rutgers
July 28, 2025

Rutgers Finds New Athletic Director After Almost a Year

Rutgers’s previous athletic director, Pat Hobbs, resigned in August 2024.
NCAA Track
July 31, 2025

NIL Collectives Can Still Pay College Athletes, With Some Restrictions

NIL collectives will still play a pivotal role in recruiting.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Dealmaker Jeffrey Kaplan maps the evolution of sports as an asset class
Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish tight end Mitchell Evans (88) runs the ball against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the second half in the CFP National Championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
July 25, 2025

‘More Bark Than Bite’: What Trump’s Executive Order Means for College Sports

“This all comes down to Congress and the courts.”
July 24, 2025

UNC’s Bill Belichick Brings His NFL Swagger to ACC Media Days

UNC is becoming one of the most interesting stories in college football.
President Donald Trump speaks during the American 250 kickoff event on July 3, 2025, at the Iowa State Fairgrouds.
July 24, 2025

Trump Signs Executive Order on College Sports Pay

The order marks Trump’s first foray into legislating college sports compensation.
July 24, 2025

ACC’s Phillips on FSU, Clemson: ‘It Can Never Be About a School..

The commissioner isn’t worried about more conference realignment.