Kirby Smart Becomes Highest Paid College Football Coach
Georgia’s Kirby Smart has received a new 10-year, $130 million deal that was approved by university officials Thursday in its annual athletics board of directors meeting. The deal makes Smart the highest-paid college football coach in the country and its first $13 million coach.
Smart, who was scheduled to earn $10.75 million this year under his old contract, will see his salary increase to $13 million annually, and that money is guaranteed for at least the first half of his contract. His new deal runs through the 2033 season. Smart could also earn up to $1.55 million in bonuses. He is entering his ninth season as Georgia’s coach. His Bulldogs captured back-to-back national championships in 2021 and 2022 and won an SEC-record 29 straight games before losing to Alabama last season in the SEC championship game.
Alabama’s Nick Saban had previously been the country’s highest-paid college football coach until retiring in January. Smart passes Clemson’s Dabo Swinney, who makes an average annual salary of $11.5 million. USC’s Lincoln Riley is also in the $11 million range in average salary, according to industry sources. Others making more than $10 million in average annual salary include Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer ($10.875 million), Texas’ Steve Sarkisian ($10.64 million) and Florida State’s Mike Norvell ($10.52 million). Sarkisian and Norvell both agreed to new deals taking them over the $10 million mark in January about the time of DeBoer’s hiring.
