Top Coach Salaries: Is Dan Mullen Worth the Price?

[Escambia94]

Dan Mullen is getting paid a top-10 salary, but he is the only coach in the top 10 without a national or conference championship. Is he worth the price? Maybe. Mel Tucker, Steve Sarkisian, and Mark Stoops get paid $2M less without so much as a division championship. Only Jimbo Fisher, Kirby Smart, and Ryan Day get paid less with a conference or national championship.

Rank	Coach	School	Salary	Conference	Championships	Buyout
1​	Nick Saban​	Alabama​	$9,753,221*​	SEC​	7 national​	$38,400,000​
2​	Ed Orgeron​	Louisiana State​	$9,012,917*​	SEC​	1 national​	$17,150,000​
3​	David Shaw​	Stanford​	$8,924,683*​	Pac-12​	3 conference​	—​
4​	Dabo Swinney​	Clemson​	$8,370,775*​	ACC​	2 national​	$47,500,000​
5​	Lincoln Riley​	Oklahoma​	$7,672,710*​	Big 12​	4 conference​	$25,188,000​
6​	Dan Mullen​	Florida​	$7,570,000*​	SEC​	1 division​	$12,000,000​
7​	Jimbo Fisher​	Texas A&M​	$7,500,000*​	SEC​	1 national​	$95,575,000​
8​	Kirby Smart​	Georgia​	$7,133,600​	SEC​	1 conference​	$14,614,167​
9​	Ryan Day​	Ohio State​	$6,614,693*​	Big Ten​	2 conference​	$28,416,668​
10​	Gary Patterson​	Texas Christian​	$6,103,543​	Big 12​	6 conference​	—​
11​	Pat Fitzgerald​	Northwestern​	$5,748,179​	Big Ten​	2 division​	—​
12​	Chip Kelly​	UCLA​	$5,600,000*​	Pac-12​	3 conference​	$9,000,000​
13​	Mel Tucker​	Michigan State​	$5,566,303*​	Big Ten​	​	$19,284,375​
14​	Steve Sarkisian​	Texas​	$5,450,000*​	Big 12​	​	$20,603,333​
15​	Mark Stoops​	Kentucky​	$5,263,600​	SEC​	​	$19,921,875​
16​	Kyle Whittingham​	Utah​	$5,200,000*​	Pac-12​	1 conference​	$18,250,000​
17​	Scott Frost​	Nebraska​	$5,000,000*​	Big Ten​	1 conference​	$20,416,667​
18​	Kirk Ferentz​	Iowa​	$5,000,000*​	Big Ten​	2 conference​	$16,503,333​
19​	Bryan Harsin​	Auburn​	$5,000,000​	SEC​	4 conference​	$17,791,667​
20​	Mike Leach​	Mississippi State​	$5,000,000*​	SEC​	2 division​	—​
21​	Lane Kiffin​	Mississippi​	$4,841,937*​	SEC​	2 conference​	—​
22​	Pat Narduzzi​	Pittsburgh​	$4,816,806​	ACC​	1 division​	—​
23​	Clay Helton​	Southern California​	$4,813,832*​	Pac-12​	1 conference​	—​
24​	P.J. Fleck​	Minnesota​	$4,420,000*​	Big Ten​	1 conference​	$15,851,875​
25​	Jeff Brohm​	Purdue​	$4,417,774*​	Big Ten​	2 conference​	$18,966,667​
26​	Mario Cristobal​	Oregon​	$4,402,917*​	Pac-12​	2 conference​	$15,030,000​
27​	Paul Chryst​	Wisconsin​	$4,362,750*​	Big Ten​	3 division​	$19,103,724​
28​	Tom Allen​	Indiana​	$4,260,000*​	Big Ten​	​	$30,000,000​
29​	Bronco Mendenhall​	Virginia​	$4,251,500*​	ACC​	2 conference​	$13,281,250​
30​	Mike Gundy​	Oklahoma State​	$4,203,125*​	Big 12​	1 conference​	$7,119,792​
40​	Mike Norvell​	Florida State​	$3,750,000*​	ACC​	​	$16,220,833​

 

[DRU2012]

Dan Mullen is getting paid a top-10 salary, but he is the only coach in the top 10 without a national or conference championship. Is he worth the price? Maybe. Mel Tucker, Steve Sarkisian, and Mark Stoops get paid $2M less without so much as a division championship. Only Jimbo Fisher, Kirby Smart, and Ryan Day get paid less with a conference or national championship.

Rank	Coach	School	Salary	Conference	Championships	Buyout
1​	Nick Saban​	Alabama​	$9,753,221*​	SEC​	7 national​	$38,400,000​
2​	Ed Orgeron​	Louisiana State​	$9,012,917*​	SEC​	1 national​	$17,150,000​
3​	David Shaw​	Stanford​	$8,924,683*​	Pac-12​	3 conference​	—​
4​	Dabo Swinney​	Clemson​	$8,370,775*​	ACC​	2 national​	$47,500,000​
5​	Lincoln Riley​	Oklahoma​	$7,672,710*​	Big 12​	4 conference​	$25,188,000​
6​	Dan Mullen​	Florida​	$7,570,000*​	SEC​	1 division​	$12,000,000​
7​	Jimbo Fisher​	Texas A&M​	$7,500,000*​	SEC​	1 national​	$95,575,000​
8​	Kirby Smart​	Georgia​	$7,133,600​	SEC​	1 conference​	$14,614,167​
9​	Ryan Day​	Ohio State​	$6,614,693*​	Big Ten​	2 conference​	$28,416,668​
10​	Gary Patterson​	Texas Christian​	$6,103,543​	Big 12​	6 conference​	—​
11​	Pat Fitzgerald​	Northwestern​	$5,748,179​	Big Ten​	2 division​	—​
12​	Chip Kelly​	UCLA​	$5,600,000*​	Pac-12​	3 conference​	$9,000,000​
13​	Mel Tucker​	Michigan State​	$5,566,303*​	Big Ten​	​	$19,284,375​
14​	Steve Sarkisian​	Texas​	$5,450,000*​	Big 12​	​	$20,603,333​
15​	Mark Stoops​	Kentucky​	$5,263,600​	SEC​	​	$19,921,875​
16​	Kyle Whittingham​	Utah​	$5,200,000*​	Pac-12​	1 conference​	$18,250,000​
17​	Scott Frost​	Nebraska​	$5,000,000*​	Big Ten​	1 conference​	$20,416,667​
18​	Kirk Ferentz​	Iowa​	$5,000,000*​	Big Ten​	2 conference​	$16,503,333​
19​	Bryan Harsin​	Auburn​	$5,000,000​	SEC​	4 conference​	$17,791,667​
20​	Mike Leach​	Mississippi State​	$5,000,000*​	SEC​	2 division​	—​
21​	Lane Kiffin​	Mississippi​	$4,841,937*​	SEC​	2 conference​	—​
22​	Pat Narduzzi​	Pittsburgh​	$4,816,806​	ACC​	1 division​	—​
23​	Clay Helton​	Southern California​	$4,813,832*​	Pac-12​	1 conference​	—​
24​	P.J. Fleck​	Minnesota​	$4,420,000*​	Big Ten​	1 conference​	$15,851,875​
25​	Jeff Brohm​	Purdue​	$4,417,774*​	Big Ten​	2 conference​	$18,966,667​
26​	Mario Cristobal​	Oregon​	$4,402,917*​	Pac-12​	2 conference​	$15,030,000​
27​	Paul Chryst​	Wisconsin​	$4,362,750*​	Big Ten​	3 division​	$19,103,724​
28​	Tom Allen​	Indiana​	$4,260,000*​	Big Ten​	​	$30,000,000​
29​	Bronco Mendenhall​	Virginia​	$4,251,500*​	ACC​	2 conference​	$13,281,250​
30​	Mike Gundy​	Oklahoma State​	$4,203,125*​	Big 12​	1 conference​	$7,119,792​
40​	Mike Norvell​	Florida State​	$3,750,000*​	ACC​	​	$16,220,833​

I wouldn’t have even gone there—I mean, this is a tough place to Coach, with high expectations, standards and resultant pressures that tend to build exponentially when things go wrong... We’ve got the money and expect to “spend for the best...but you are expected to stay—and stay AT it! It hasn’t BEEN just the losses but some of the strange comments, let downs and continued failures and deterioration in important areas developmentally that have seemed to build as time goes on here that plagues alumni, fans and followers now.
We long for signs of improvement, but instead we appear to be witnessing a FAILURE to fully, properly respond.
We need to see clear moves toward improvement in recruiting, defensive play, and even our own COACH’S direct control over his supposed strengths on offense. He has instead of late shown a certain distracted dithering in both whom he’s got at quarterback, and the overall offense he has them run. He doesn’t seem to be aware now of his team’s own strengths—ones which presumably HE built and designed!
This must change.