Ben Herbert salary: How much did the former Michigan strength and conditioning coach make with the Wolverines?

Ben Herbert will be leaving the Michigan Wolverines to join Jim Harbaugh with the Los Angeles Chargers of the NFL.

Herbert has been with the Wolverines since January 2018 after a five-year tenure at the University of Arkansas. He also spent 11 seasons working with the strength and conditioning staff at Wisconsin.

At Michigan, Herbert's title was associate head coach/strength and conditioning coach, and played a key role in the Wolverines' success.

According to reports, Herbert was one of the highest-paid assistants in college football. In 2022, Herbert got a $400,000 signing bonus in addition to his $600,000 base salary in 2023, for a total of $1 million. He was also eligible for an annual $50,000 bonus for each Michigan regular-season victory over eight, capped at $200,000.

Back in December 2022, Harbaugh had massive praise for Herbert as he called him the X-factor for their football program:

“He is the X-factor in our football program,” Harbaugh said, via Michigan Live. “He is the center of player development. He is phenomenal; more than anybody in our entire program.

"It’s with every player, it’s with every position group. His impact on every single player, every single coach — including myself — we say he’s the best.”

Had Herbert stayed, he would have made $900,000 in salary in 2024, along with an annual retention bonus of $100,000 on Aug. 1, guaranteeing him $1 million in pay for the life of the deal.

In 2022, Herbert made $700,000, which included a $600,000 salary and a $100,000 retention bonus.

---

Ben Herbert called Jim Harbaugh's best hire

Ben Herbert joining Jim Harbaugh with the Los Angeles Chargers is not a surprise.

In a feature story in The Athletic in September of 2023, Harbaugh said he's never made a better hire than Herbert.

"I’ve never seen somebody that was an old-school strength coach and cutting-edge scientific strength coach. You usually get one or the other. (He’s) the absolute perfect blend... I’ve never had a better hire than Ben Herbert, what he’s done for this program."

How much money Herbert will make with the Chargers is uncertain, but it likely will be around the $1 million he was expected to make in 2024 with the Wolverines.