So the big news in college football today is Urban Meyer's new $24M contract at the University of Florida, in essence making him college football's second highest paid coach (USCs Pete Carroll is first). I hope he at least thanks Tim Tebow with a steak dinner or something considering his star quarterback gets paid exactly $0. Of course this kind of news of NFL- level contracts stirs lots of debate around whether college coaches are really worth what they're paid and whether this coach's is worth more than that coach's and if they are paid accordingly.
What is unique about being a high paid college football coach is that anyone can find out your salary with a quick Google. For example the Orlando Sentinal just recently published a list of college coach salaries, so with quick scan down the list we can see where our own Virginia Tech Football Coach Frank Beamer's salary ranks amongst his pears. The list is interesting to say the least.
Frank Beamer is tied for the 19th highest paid coach in college football with a $2.1M / year salary. Now what this doesn't tell you is their total compensation (bonus, endorsements, shoe deals, etc.) and frankly I don't know exactly how much that varies from coach to coach but I'm sure it skews the list some (I doubt Nike pays SMU coach June Jones as much for his players to wear their stuff as they do a power SEC school). Plus, a good contract I'm sure depends on how recently you renegotiated and what your 'stock' was when you did. I'm guessing Kirk Ferentz at Iowa did his $3.03M deal a few years ago when he was an up and comer, because he's not been worth that lately.
But certainly things do stick out on this list. You can see why Charlie Weiss gets some heat at ND. That's no chump change he makes and you can't lose to Navy and make $4.2M a year. I'm guess the fire under Rich Rodriquez seat at Michigan will get hot real quick especially being tied for 12th on the list. And would you say our friends in Charlottesville are getting their money's worth for Al Groh, number 24? Yes, the UVa coach sticks out just a little bit on this list.
So is Frank Beamer where he should be on this list? I think so. Sure if you've been successful, you can hop around and chase a better job, and find a higher salary. That's true in any profession. And Beamer has not won a National Championship yet. However that's not Beamer's thing, he's got a good gig in Blacksburg, is well paid, stable, and will surely renegotiate each time is contract is up to keep him competitive salary wise. Joe Paterno is closer to retirement but seems to have taken the same career path.
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Are the coaches paid more than Beamer that are less deserving or less accomplished? Of course. I'm not sure how the coach at Rutgers, Georgia Tech, Kansas, Ole Miss, Missouri, or Arkansas could ever piece together a better resume, but its all about timing, circumstances, and when you did your contract. Those coaches would probably be a lot closer to firing with a few bad seasons than Beamer ever would be as well.
Going down the list is where it gets even more interesting. There are plenty of coaches who truly are bargains relative to the market. Can you spot them? The coaches who are bargains may want to take negotiating classes from online universities so they can get a better deal.
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Let’s not forget the value of living and working where you want to. Frank Beamer grew up in southwest Virginia about an hour from Blacksburg, so he has roots in the area LONG before he came to Virginia Tech.