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As one of just nine coaches in men’s college basketball history with 700-plus wins and multiple national championships, Kansas coach Bill Self is in the upper echelons of the sport’s elite.
And he has a salary to match.
Kansas amended Self’s lifetime contract with the school to be a five-year rolling contract in November 2023—with the first iteration of it paying him a reported $53 million over five years.
When he won his second national title in 2022, the 63-year-old was making $10.2 million, but due to the contract structure, his pay dropped to $8.8 million.
With the new deal, Self reclaims the title of the nation’s highest-paid men’s college basketball coach after Arkansas’ John Calipari briefly supplanted him. Calipari is now the third-highest-paid coach.
UConn’s Dan Hurley, Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, and Tennessee’s Rick Barnes round out the top five, all making more than $6 million a season.
Highest-Paid College Basketball Coaches of 2026
Here are the top 25 highest-paid coaches in men’s college basketball, using data from USA Today based on the 2025-26 season but taking into account coaching changes, compensation data, and the latest information.
Updated: June 23, 2026
| Rank | Coach | School | Total Pay | Conf. |
| 1 | Bill Self | Kansas | $8,853,800 | Big 12 |
| 2 | Dan Hurley | UConn | $8,025,000 | Big East |
| 3 | John Calipari | Arkansas | $7,750,000 | SEC |
| 4 | Tom Izzo | Michigan State | $7,196,879 | Big Ten |
| 5 | Rick Barnes | Tennessee | $6,200,000 | SEC |
| T-6 | Todd Golden | Florida | $6,000,000 | SEC |
| T-6 | Chris Beard | Ole Miss | $6,000,000 | SEC |
| 8 | Nate Oats | Alabama | $5,510,000 | SEC |
| T-9 | Kelvin Sampson | Houston | $5,500,000 | Big 12 |
| T-9 | Tommy Lloyd | Arizona | $5,500,000 | Big 12 |
| 11 | Scott Drew | Baylor | $5,474,290 | Big 12 |
| 12 | Brad Underwood | Illinois | $5,400,000 | Big Ten |
| 13 | Mark Pope | Kentucky | $5,250,000 | SEC |
| 14 | Sean Miller | Texas | $5,055,000 | SEC |
| 15 | Grant McCasland | Texas Tech | $5,000,000 | Big 12 |
| 16 | Matt Painter | Purdue | $4,975,000 | Big Ten |
| 17 | Buzz Williams | Maryland | $4,875,000 | Big Ten |
| 18 | Mick Cronin | UCLA | $4,500,000 | Big 10 |
| 19 | Chris Jans | Mississippi State | $4,400,000 | SEC |
| 20 | Jamie Dixon | TCU | $4,365,321 | Big 12 |
| 21 | Fred Hoiberg | Nebraska | $4,350,000 | Big Ten |
| 22 | Darian DeVries | Indiana | $4,325,000 | Big Ten |
| 23 | T.J. Otzelberger | Iowa State | $4,300,000 | Big 12 |
| 24 | Mike Rhoades | Penn State | $4,229,999 | Big Ten |
| 25 | Dennis Gates | Missouri | $4,200,000 | SEC |
