NCAA D1 Football Coaching Contracts

In-depth Contract Analysis

Coach Contract Rankings

Full Rankings

  1. Dabo Swinney (Clemson)
  2. Nick Saban (Alabama)
  3. Jim Harbaugh (Michigan)
  4. Ed Orgeron (LSU)
  5. Jimbo Fisher (Texas A&M)
  6. Kirby Smart (Georgia)
  7. Gus Malzahn (Auburn)
  8. Tom Herman (Texas)
  9. Lincoln Riley (Oklahoma)
  10. Jeff Brohm (Purdue)
  11. Ryan Day (Ohio State)
  12. Chip Kelly (UCLA)
  13. Mike Norvell (Florida State)
  14. Dan Mullen (Florida)
  15. Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State)
  16. Scott Frost (Nebraska)
  17. Jeff Scott (South Florida)
  18. Kirk Ferentz (Iowa)
  19. Mark Stoops (Kentucky)
  20. Jimmy Lake (Washington)
  21. Kevin Sumlin (Arizona)
  22. Will Muschamp (South Carolina)
  23. Mario Cristobal (Oregon)
  24. Mel Tucker (Michigan State)
  25. PJ Fleck (Minnesota)
  26. Paul Chryst (Wisconsin)
  27. Bronco Mendenhall (Virginia)
  28. Kyle Whittingham (Utah)
  29. Lovie Smith (Illinois)
  30. Willie Taggart (Florida Atlantic)
  31. Joeseph Moorhead (Mississippi State)
  32. Dave Doeren (North Carolina State)
  33. Justin Fuente (VA Tech)
  34. Jeremy Pruitt (Tennessee)
  35. Mike Leach (Washington State)
  36. Major Applewhite (Houston)
  37. Lane Kiffin (Mississippi)
  38. Eliah Drinkwitz (Missouri)
  39. Justin Wilcox (UC Berkeley)
  40. Jonathan Smith (Oregon State)
  41. Craig Bohl (Wyoming)
  42. Dana Holgorsen (West Virginia)
  43. Matt Campbell (Iowa State)
  44. Jay Hopson (Southern Mississippi)
  45. William Mack Brown (North Carolina)
  46. Jason Candle (Toledo)
  47. Mike Bobo (Colorado State)
  48. Scott Satterfield (Louisville)
  49. Gregory Schiano (Rutgers)
  50. Bryan Harsin (Boise State)
  51. Tom Allen (Indiana)
  52. Randy Edsall (Connecticut)
  53. Matt Wells (Texas Tech)
  54. Brady Hoke (San Diego State)
  55. Kalen DeBoer (Fresno State)
  56. Frank Solich (Ohio University)
  57. Danny Gonzales (New Mexico)
  58. Ricky Rahne (Old Dominion)
  59. Leslie Edwin Miles (Kansas)
  60. Skip Holtz (Louisiana Tech)
  61. Chris Creighton (Eastern Michigan)
  62. Chuck Martin (Miami of Ohio)
  63. Butch Davis (Florida International)
  64. Thomas Hammock (Northern Illinois)
  65. Michael Locksley (Maryland)
  66. Rick Stockstill (Middle Tennessee State)
  67. Karl Dorrell (Colorado)
  68. Shawn Elliott (Georgia State)
  69. Herman Edwards (Arizona State)
  70. Doc Holliday (Marshall)
  71. Lance Leipold (Buffalo)
  72. Doug Martin (New Mexico State)
  73. Chad Lunsford (Georgia Southern)
  74. Blake Anderson (Arkansas State)
  75. Nick Rolovich (Hawaii)
  76. Jeff Traylor (Texas at San Antonio)
  77. Seth Littrell (North Texas)
  78. Chris Klieman (Kansas State)
  79. Sean Lewis (Kent State)
  80. Tim Lester (Western Michigan)
  81. Marcus Arroyo (UNLV)
  82. Matt Viator (Louisiana-Monroe)
  83. Billy Napier (Louisiana at Lafayette)
  84. Mike Neu (Ball State)
  85. Brent Brennan (San Jose State)
  86. Jay Norvell (Nevada)
  87. Paul Petrino (Idaho)
  88. Tom Arth (Akron)
  89. Geoff Collins (Georgia Tech)
  90. Shawn Clark (Appalachian State)
  91. Sam Pittman (Arkansas)
  92. Scot Loeffler (Bowling Green State)
  93. Mike Houston (East Carolina)
  94. Luke Fickell (Cincinnati)
  95. Walt Bell (Massachusetts)
  96. Gary Anderson (Utah State)
  97. Michael London (William and Mary)
  98. Tyson Helton (Western Kentucky)
  99. Will Healy (North Carolina Charlotte)
  100. Jim McElwain (Central Michigan)
  101. Jacob Spavital (Texas State)

Rankings Methodology

These rankings reflect my subjective analysis of the best employment contracts for the coaches.  As an employment lawyer, I have had an opportunity to review hundreds, if not thousands, of employment contracts, in my career.  In this sense, I reviewed the contracts and attempted to determine the “best” contract.

Of course, this is subjective.  Does overall compensation matter?  Yes, very much so.  But it is not everything.  There are considerations that also go into a good contract, including perks, benefits, length of contract, golden parachute clause, and buy-out if the coach leaves.  In this sense, I reviewed the contract on seven factors:

  1. Length of Contract
  2. Overall Compensation/Year
  3. Bonus Opportunities
  4. Buy-Out Provision (that is, if the Coach resigns)
  5. Golden Parachute Provision (that is, the compensation to the Coach if the Coach is fired)
  6. Perks
  7. Duties of Coach for Academic Performance and Team Off-the-Field Issues

These rankings also reflect my subjective value to each category.  For examples, some may value overall compensation as the most important, whereas others may find the perks the most important factor.  Overall, the rankings reflect my subjective of the “best” contracts based on these various factors.  If you disagree, I would enjoy hearing why.

-Dan Kalish