As one of just nine coaches in men’s college basketball history with 700-plus wins and multiple national championships, Kansas coach Bill Self (above) is in the upper echelons of the sport’s elite. Now, he has a salary to match.
Kansas amended Self’s lifetime contract with the school to be a five-year rolling contract—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 60-year-old was making $10.2 million, but his 2023 pay dropped due to the structure of the contract.
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.
Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, Auburn’s Bruce Pearl, and Tennessee’s Rick Barnes round out the top five, all making over $5 million in a season.
Top 25 Coaches 2023 to ’24
Here are the top 25 highest-paid coaches in men’s college basketball, using data from USA Today based on the 2023-24 season but taking into account coaching changes, compensation data, and the latest information.
- Updated: November 4th, 2024
- Will be updated again: March 2025
| Rank | Coach | School | Total Pay | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill Self | Kansas | $9,625,642 | Big 12 |
| 2 | John Calipari | Arkansas | $8,000,000 | SEC |
| 3 | Tom Izzo | Michigan St | $6,196,169 | Big Ten |
| 4 | Bruce Pearl | Auburn | $5,716,652 | SEC |
| 5 | Rick Barnes | Tennessee | $5,700,000 | SEC |
| 6 | Scott Drew | Baylor | $5,132,821 | Big 12 |
| 7 | Dan Hurley | UConn | $5,000,000 | Big East |
| 8 | Matt Painter | Purdue | $4,850,000 | Big Ten |
| 9 | Brad Underwood | Illinois | $4,700,000 | Big Ten |
| 10 | Kelvin Sampson | Houston | $4,610,000 | Big 12 |
| 11 | Nate Oats | Alabama | $4,530,045 | SEC |
| 12 | Buzz Williams | Texas A&M | $4,487,215 | SEC |
| 13 | Eric Musselman | USC | $4,245,850 | Big Ten |
| 14 | Mike Woodson | Indiana | $4,200,000 | Big Ten |
| T-15 | Mick Cronin | UCLA | $4,100,000 | Big Ten |
| T-15 | Tommy Lloyd | Arizona | $4,100,000 | Big 12 |
| T-17 | Dennis Gates | Missouri | $4,000,000 | SEC |
| T-17 | Dana Altman | Oregon | $4,000,000 | Big Ten |
| T-17 | Kevin Willard | Maryland | $4,000,000 | Big Ten |
| 20 | Jamie Dixon | TCU | $3,808,347 | Big 12 |
| 21 | Andy Enfield | SMU | $3,806,389 | ACC |
| 22 | Greg Gard | Wisconsin | $3,765,875 | Big Ten |
| 23 | Jeff Capel | Pittsburgh | $3,595,990 | ACC |
| 24 | Steve Pikiell | Rutgers | $3,550,000 | Big Ten |
| 25 | Michael White | Georgia | $3,507,000 | SEC |
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