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College Football Recruiting, Opinion, and Analysis

The Gus Bus, Rich Rod, Tedford, and More: The 20 Best Value Coaching Contracts in FBS

Which coaches generate the most bang for the buck in college football?

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Nov 19
Nov 19

By: Mike Huesmann

We move to a list of a different sort in this article. That is one focused on contracts and value, that is value to the school.

The concept of this idea came to me when looking over a list of FBS coaches and their annual salaries. While arbitrary in nature, I had to design criteria for this value. Naturally, the annual salary is a key component. There were also four other factors I included: coaching success in the past (conference titles, bowl appearances, elevating the program), longevity and stability at the school (a coach with success in his 8th year at a school ranks higher than a coach in his 2nd year on an identical salary), future potential (how is the coach doing with the transfer portal, NIL, and managing the roster and his assistant coaches), and how desirable that coach would be to other schools.

I should note that the lifetime of the contract will not be included, nor will incentives. It is solely the base salary for 2024. Combining these five factors led me to this list.

20. Matt Campbell, Iowa State- $4 million

Cambell makes this list because of his consistency and always seeming to gain interest from other programs. He’s not been great, but he took over an awful program in 2016 and has risen since then by every metric. His $4 million salary isn’t cheap, but he’s earned it.

19. James Franklin, Penn State- $8.5 million

James Franklin is not one of the ten highest-paid coaches in America, but his Penn State teams are consistently near or in the top ten teams. His success at Vanderbilt and Penn State, while basically only having 1 down year, is impressive. His massive haul of $8.5 million makes it harder to put him higher on this list. He is the first of four “whale” contracts on the list, classified by me as more than $6 million a year.

Penn State head football coach James Franklin holds out his hands to greet the offensive back to the sideline after a 4-yard touchdown pass from Beau Pribula to Omari Evans against Delaware Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023, in State College, Pa.

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18. Jeff Brohm, Louisville- $5.1 million

Brohm won at Purdue and WKU. Now he’s winning at Louisville. He’s done great in the portal era, and the future looks bright. If he keeps giving Louisville the hometown discount, he could perennially be a member of this list.

17. Chris Klieman, Kansas State- $5 million

Klieman is very close to being in that elite group of coaches. The value for K-State is that his salary hasn’t quite reached that level yet. Apart from the 2020 COVID season, he has never won less than 8 games for the Wildcats and prior to that, he won 4 FCS national titles overseeing the most dominant era of NDSU football.

16. Gus Malzahn, UCF- $4 million

Gus had won 9 games in each of his seasons with UCF before a 6-7 season last year in the Big 12. That, combined with his long tenure at Auburn, helping the transition to a power conference, and the name recognition he brings, places him at a decent value even at $4 annually.

15. Dan Lanning, Oregon- $7 million

The second whale on the list and one of the most promising young names in the game. He left Georgia and has not stepped a foot wrong since taking over for Mario. He is recruiting well, adding in the portal well, his assistant coaches are happy, helps the national brand, and the future is as bright as anyone. There’s a reason Alabama was interested.

14. Barry Odom, UNLV- $1.75 million

UNLV bought low, Odom bet on himself, and it paid off for both parties. UNLV have been in shambles under all recent coaches, yet it took Odom one year to get them to a bowl game and nine wins. At $1.75 million, I may have him too low on this list. Another year like 2023, and he is back in the P4.

13. Dave Doeren, NC State- $5 million

Doeren checks most of the metrics that I used in this list. He just finished year 11 with the Wolfpack and has brought consistency and stability, which I’ve praised in him before. That consistency equals bowl games, TV games, and millions of dollars to NC State.

Sep 17, 2022; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren (center) reacts to a a call with officials during the second half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Carter-Finley Stadium.

12. Kirby Smart, Georgia- $11.25 million

Kirby is the second highest-paid coach in the nation. Only Dabo makes more. But this is still a good value for UGA, who were a middle-of-the-road team before he arrived in Athens. Still only eight seasons into his tenure, he has brought two national titles home, and that number looks to rise. The third whale on the list, by nearly all metrics, he should be the nation’s highest-paid coach.

11. Jason Candle, Toledo- $1.25 million

Candle looks to keep Toledo near the top of the MAC, as he seems to every year. His career record at the only school he’s ever been HC at is fantastic, and he’s earning his salary and then some every year. With so many MAC coaches jumping ship, will any amount be able to keep him long-term?

10. Lance Leipold, Kansas- $7 million

Our final whale on the list and the most recent to join that rank, the ink on his extension and raise has not even dried yet. At his 2023 slated price of $5 million, he would’ve been a top 5 value coach. At $7 million, he is still a bargain. At any price, he is a bargain for Kansas. That’s how bad they were when he took over. He’s been the miracle worker in his time in Lawrence.

9. Willie Fritz, Houston- $4.5 million

The lone new hire on the list, and he’s still a value at $4.5 million a year. That’s how impressive Willie Fritz’s resume is. He’s won everywhere and left every job better than when he took it over. That’s the mark of a good coach. Add $1.5-2 million to this salary, and Fritz still might make the list.

8. Jeff Traylor, UTSA- $2.8 million

Traylor has coached for four years for UTSA and brought success that the relatively new program never had before. In the last three seasons, they’ve won a minimum of nine games, and he led them in the transition from CUSA to the AAC. We heard there was interest from Houston and Texas A&M, and it isn’t hard to see why. UTSA is fortunate to still have him.

Sep 10, 2022; West Point, New York, USA; UTSA Roadrunners head coach Jeff Traylor celebrates a win against the Army Black Knights at Michie Stadium.

7. Kyle Whittingham, Utah- $5 million

I was surprised Whittingham was not on the whale list, which means he’s a bargain for Utah. He has been the HC here since 2004, when Urban Meyer left for Florida. That should speak for longevity, consistency, and stability. Winner of 162 games, they don’t get much better than Whittingham. His Utes look to be an immediate contender in the Big 12.

6. Tyson Helton, Western Kentucky- $900,000

We associate WKU with success, but that neglects the situation Helton took over. While Petrino and Brohm succeeded, Mike Sanford did not, and that’s why Helton took over in 2019. Still making less than $1 million a year, he has only won less than eight games in the 2020 COVID year.

5. Rich Rodriguez, Jacksonville State- $1 million

A national name, electric offense, transition to FBS, bowl appearance, and a cut-rate price all in one. Rich Rod has been a great hire for Jax State, and I will be curious if he jumps to a P4 job or sees this as his career-ending job.

4. Chris Creighton, Eastern Michigan- $590,000

Creighton just finished year ten at EMU, and though it was a down year, his making less than $600k a year is highway robbery for EMU. The amount he generates and the level he typically coaches at more than pay for this. He is one of the few guys on this list who, I can safely say, should be making double what he does.

3. Jeff Tedford, Fresno State- $1.6 million

I am proud to be a long-time Ted Head, and at this price point, you should be, too. Fresno State was fortunate that he wanted to come back and coach when Kalen DeBoer left for Washington. He’s seen it all, won everywhere, and if things go south, he’ll retire as opposed to taking a buyout. He’s won 10 and 9 games in his two years back in charge. At this price, let him keep going as long as he wants.

2. Alex Golesh, South Florida- $2.5 million

Speaking of quick turnarounds, they don’t get much quicker than Golesh and USF. Golesh took over an abomination of a program from Jeff Scott and won 7 games and a bowl game in year 1 (they had won a combined four games in three years under Scott). At that price, with the facilities and things USF has to offer, this is a great bargain. Plus, when Golesh gets a P4 job soon, they’ll collect a hefty buyout.

1. GJ Kinne, Texas State- $1 million

In a few years, that salary next to Kinne’s name will be 3 or 4 times what it is now. Few guys use the portal as well, few guys turn around a program faster than him, and few have an offense that is as effective. He’ll be a P4 coach quickly, which will mean buyout money coming for Texas State.

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