A while back, a friend of mine Marilyn asked
about the very high college coach salaries and are they worth
it.
A head football coach
is more impactful on the success of that team than virtually any
other coaching position in sports. Some of their duties include:
recruiting his players,
calculating what their future growth and maturity rates are,
assemble a huge staff of talented assistants, deal with young
people going through many emotional challenges, put together
winning offensive and defensive schemes, and deal with the
administration alumni and press. The monetary effect of
producing packed stadium, alumni contributions, and huge
television contracts are all a function of winning.
Regarding whether they
are worth it, we must consider college sports as a business,
which it is. For instance, USA Today reported Texas A&M’s athletic revenues
totaled $192 million, the most of any school in the nation. Its
coach is receiving 7.5 million dollars a year. From a business
standpoint, it appears to be appropriate. When looked upon in
the larger landscape of the success of an athletics program,
coaches can be seen as the centerpiece
Ticket sales,
advertising deals, merchandise sales, licensing agreements all
increase by millions of dollars each year when the football
program is winning and playing at a top level. Lucrative deals
and extensions with Nike, Adidas, or Under Armour heavily depend
upon the success of football.
This, of course does
not answer the question of whether colleges should be in the
business of sports vs. providing education.
A few examples of
contracts below:
Alabama head coach Nick
Saban signed a three-year contract extension in May that will
pay the five-time national champion $11.125 million in 2017,
according to USA Today. The deal, which is worth $65 million
over eight years, made Saban the highest paid college coach
across all sports. Record at Alabama: 119-19 in 11 seasons -
National championships: 5 total (2003 at LSU; 2009, 2011, 2012,
2015 at Alabama)
Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh made $7 million in 2017. Record
at Michigan: 20-6 in three seasons
Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer made $6 million in 2017.
Record at Ohio State: 61-6 in six seasons - National
championships: 1 at Ohio State (3 total)
Penn State coach James Franklin signed a contract extension that
guarantees him $34.7 million through 2022, bringing his annual
base salary to $5.78 million (up from $4.6 million) with up to
$1 million in incentives. Record at Penn State: 25-15 in four
seasons
Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher made $5.3 million in 2017
and will make
$75 million over 10 years at Texas A&M. His record at
Florida State: 78-17 in eight seasons. National championships: 1
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney inked a new deal that runs through
2021 and brings his average annual salary up to $5.125 million.
Record at Clemson: 89-28 - National championships: 1
New Texas Longhorns coach Tom Herman signed a five-year deal
worth $5 million per year, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin made $5 million in 2017. Record
at Texas A&M: 44-21 in six seasons
Auburn coach Gus Malzahn signed a four-year extension in 2016
that will pay him $4.725 million per year. Record at Auburn:
35-18 in five seasons
Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz
signed a contract extension in 2016 that brought his base salary
up to $4.5 million annually.