It’s no secret that there’s an abundance of cash flowing around college football — and players still are not being compensated for their work — and a lot of it ends up in the pockets of the head coaches. Sometimes, they’re the highest-paid public employees in a state.
College football coaches have massive salaries that don’t seem to be decreasing anytime soon, and many of them have eight-figure buyouts built into their contracts. But thanks to USA TODAY Sports‘ detailed database, which was published Monday, we know how much most coaches are being paid this season.
So here’s a look at the top-25 highest-paid college football coaches in 2023, according to USA TODAY Sports.
25
Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri
(Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $6,000,000
24
Shane Beamer, South Carolina
Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports
Total pay: $6,125,000
23
Kyle Whittingham, Utah
(Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $6,325,000
22
Sam Pittman, Arkansas
(Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $6,357,500
21
Brett Bielema, Illinois
(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Total pay: $6,500,000
20
Hugh Freeze, Auburn
(John Reed-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $6,500,000
19
Dan Lanning, Oregon
(Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $6,624,999
18
Kirk Ferentz, Iowa
(AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Total pay: $7,000,000
17
Brent Venables, Oklahoma
(AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)
Total pay: $7,100,000
16
Billy Napier, Florida
(Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $7,270,000
15
Mike Norvell, Florida State
(Isaiah Vazquez/Getty Images)
Total pay: $7,300,000
14
Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
(AP Photo/Brody Schmidt)
Total pay: $7,625,000
13
Luke Fickell, Wisconsin
(AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Total pay: $7,625,000
12
Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
(Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $8,254,600
11
James Franklin, Penn State
(Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Total pay: $8,500,000
10
Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss
(Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $9,000,000
9
Josh Heupel, Tennessee
(Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $9,000,000
8
Mark Stoops, Kentucky
(Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $9,013,600
7
Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M
(Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $9,150,000
6
Brian Kelly, LSU
(Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $9,975,000
5
Mel Tucker, Michigan State*
(AP Photo/Al Goldis)
Total pay: $10,015,350
*After Tucker was suspended without pay on September 10, Michigan State officially fired him for cause on September 27. A USA TODAY Sports investigation published September 10 revealed allegations of sexual harassment.
4
Ryan Day, Ohio State
(Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $10,271,250
3
Kirby Smart, Georgia
(Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $10,705,600
2
Dabo Swinney, Clemson
(AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman)
Total pay: $10,884,775
1
Nick Saban, Alabama
(Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports)
Total pay: $11,407,000
