The University of Texas has been a staple in college football for a long, long time. In fact, Texas happens to be one of the most popular teams in our country with a rabid fanbase. However, success on the field has been fleeting since the 2000s with those days of Colt McCoy and Vince Young.
In 2017, Texas tried to regain its glory by poaching the nearby University of Houston’s head coach, Tom Herman. Herman had enjoyed massive success with the Cougars and led them to two highly productive seasons of 13 and 9 wins. Houston has never been seen as a college football powerhouse inside the state. As a result, their success had made Herman one of the most popular head coach candidates among Power 5 conference schools.
But Herman’s popularity on the coaching market meant Texas had to offer him a rather large contract. This contract came with the expectations of bringing this team back to college football’s pinnacle, which hasn’t been smooth sailing for Herman.
It raises the question: has Tom Herman been worth this investment during his first three years in Austin? But before we can answer this question, we must break down the exact contract details to see what he earns year after year.
Tom Herman’s Contract Details
Total Guaranteed Compensation
As with most head coach contract’s, Herman’s guaranteed compensation was split into two categories:
- Base Salary = $3,500,000
- Corporate Payments: January 1, 2017= $1,750,000, January 1, 2018: $2,000,000, January 1, 2019: $2,250,000
- One-time special payment on December 25, 2019 = $1,000,000
The corporate payments will increase by a figure of $250,000 every year. Due to this, his guaranteed compensation changed year to year:
- 2017: $5,250,000
- 2018: $5,500,000
- 2019: $6,750,000
Each of these figures put his guaranteed salary among the most costly in college football. It rivals Jim Harbaugh, Nick Saban, Lincoln Riley, and Kirby Smart’s contracts. Texas is paying top-end money for Herman’s services because they expect outstanding results.
Additional Income
Herman can earn more than his guaranteed salary by hitting specific incentives throughout each college football season. These incentives are broken up into two categories, which detail what benchmarks provide him with additional cash:
Performance Incentives
- Becomes Big 12 Conference Champions = $100,000
- Participates in a bowl game other than the six Major bowls (Rose, Cotton, Peach, Sugar, Orange, and Fiesta) = $25,000 (an additional $50,000 for winning)
- Appears in a Major six bowl game = $50,000 (an additional $50,000 for winning)
- Makes the College Football Playoff = $100,000
- Appears in College Football Playoff Final = $125,000
- Wins College Football Playoff = $250,000
- Achieves a College Football Playoff Final Ranking of 2-5 = $180,000
- Achieves a College Football Playoff Final Ranking of 6-10 = $120,000
Coaching Recognition Incentives
- Named National Coach of the Year for one (or more) of the following awards: Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award, George Monger Coach of the Year Award, Bear Bryant Coach of the Year, Home Depot Coach of the Year, Associated Press Coach of the Year, Walter Camp Football Foundation Coach of the Year and Gene Stallings Coach of the Year = $100,000
- Wins Big 12 Coach of the Year = $50,000
What Tom Herman Made Each Year
2017
Tom Herman’s first season in Austin wasn’t a pretty one with the Longhorns finishing a mediocre 7-6. Nobody expected too much from the team due to their lack of talent. In other words, Charlie Strong was fired for a reason, and Herman suffered the consequences during this first year.
His first season was always going to be a rebuilding year, making it hard to conclude it’s a failure. Texas fans probably would’ve liked to see a few more wins, but he did have impressive losses against rivals, such as Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. The late-season win over West Virginia would end up being his shining moment in 2017.
Overall, his first year didn’t allow him to recoup a lot of these incentives. The only one he was able to pick up was winning the Texas Bowl against Missouri, which gave him an additional $75,000. His total yearly earnings came to $5,325,000.
It’s a figure Texas was probably always willing to dish out during a rebuilding first year. The real shows of his worth would come in the next couple of seasons.
2018
Tom Herman’s coming out party would happen in 2018, finishing with a 10-4 record. Those ten wins came against a lot of top-tier, including conference rivals Oklahoma, TCU, Iowa State, and a win in the Sugar Bowl against a powerful Georgia squad.
But this season could have gone a lot better without some rather unsettling losses to Oklahoma State and Maryland. Both these teams were mediocre and had no business beating the Texas Longhorns. It would kill their chances of making the Playoff, which was sealed with a loss in the Conference Championship Game against Oklahoma.
Texas would finish the season ranked 9th in the polls to create a sense of positivity around the Longhorns. Herman would rack up an additional $220,000 in incentives from winning a Major Six bowl game and having a top 10 ranking. His overall earnings would be an impressive $5,770,000 in his successful second season.
2019
It was clear to everyone his third season would be even better with his star quarterback, Sam Ehlinger, coming back. But Herman’s team found themselves with a lot of injuries and subpar play on the defensive side, killing their progress. Texas would end the 2019 season 8-5, which was a long way from what everyone predicted in the preseason.
Herman still had some impressive wins over Kansas State and Utah. But the most eye-opening performance had to be their second game of the season against eventual National Champions, LSU. Texas lost a nail biter, 45-38, against a team nobody could stop all-season. It showed the potential within this squad when it was relatively healthy.
Honestly, Herman did an excellent job getting the most out of a team that couldn’t stop a nosebleed. Most of these defensive issues came from critical players getting injured rather than his inability to recruit or lousy coaching. Setback seasons like these tend to happen now and then to even the greatest coaches in the world.
As for Herman’s 2019 earnings, he’d rack up an additional $75,000 (Alamo Bowl win) to bring his total to $6,825,000. It’s clear that Texas didn’t achieve their goals, but the unforeseen circumstances with critical injuries made it almost impossible. Herman’s ability to keep them competitive during this time should be looked at with positivity.
Does His Success Merit Texas’s Investment?
If this article were written about a year ago, the answer would be a resounding yes. His second season improvement was more than worth the investment provided by Texas. Herman might not have won a championship, but he made Texas relevant, and a Major Six bowl win isn’t anything to overlook. His third season does leave a bad impression, but the obstacles were a bit too much to replicate or better their record. This outcome has caused some to cast doubt on his ability to get Texas another National Championship.
But the main point to make is Herman’s a good/great college football coach. Texas hasn’t had a guy like him since Mack Brown left in 2013. They were looking to make their team relevant again, and Herman has provided it. This relevance alone should be more than enough to conclude he’s been worth his contract.