Top 5 highest-paid college football coaches heading into 2025 season ft. Ryan Day

On Thursday, it was announced that Ohio State Buckeyes coach Ryan Day would be getting a new contract. Day had just won the national championship with the Buckeyes and his new contract keeps him in Columbus until 2031.

The news of this new contract caused some fans online to ask who are the coaches with the highest value contracts for the 2025 season.

Let's look into this question to find out.

Top 5 highest-paid coaches in college football

#1 Kirby Smart (Georgia Bulldogs)

The highest-earning coach coming into the 2025 college football season is the coach of the Georgia Bulldogs. Kirby Smart has a contract worth $13.3 million a year and is set to be with the Bulldogs until 2033.

Smart has already been with the program since 2016 and led Georgia to two consecutive national championships and three SEC championships. Under Smart, the Bulldogs have always been in contention for national championships and they should be in the conversation in 2025 as well.

#2 Ryan Day (Ohio State Buckeyes)

In signing his new contract, Ryan Day is second among coaches' salaries in college football. His contract is worth $12.5 million per year and it is the reward for leading Ohio State to the national championship. Day has been successful in the regular season but has previously struggled in the big games and has failed to defeat Michigan on the last four occasions.

This being said, the Buckeyes are on the up and are likely to remain in contention for many years to come.

#3 Dabo Swinney (Clemson Tigers)

Third on the list is Dabo Swinney of the Clemson Tigers. He has been the coach of the program since 2008 and has led the team to two national championships. He signed a contract extension in 2022 worth $115 million over 10 years.

This means that Swinney is set to earn $11.5 million this year before any bonuses are added depending on performance. Clemson has not been the dominant side they were in the middle of the 2010s recently, but they will want to regain the ACC title they won in 2024.

#4 Steve Sarkisian (Texas Longhorns)

The story of Steve Sarkisian is one of redemption. Sarkisian overcame personal problems to become one of the best coaches in college football. He has revived the Longhorns program, taking them to the CFP semifinals the last two years.

Sarkisian has a salary of $10.6 million a year on average, making him fourth among the highest-paid coaches in the sport. With the likes of Arch Manning on the roster, there is a strong chance that Sarkisian will be the next coach to lift the national championship trophy.

#5 Lincoln Riley (USC Trojans)

In 2022, Riley swapped the Oklahoma Sooners for the USC Trojans, who gave him a 10-year contract worth $110 million.

His salary for the 2025 season is reported to be $10.04 million. While USC is not what it was in the early 2000s, Riley is slowly getting the team adjusted to playing in the Big Ten. However, with the likes of Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Oregon in the conference, do not expect them to challenge any time soon unless an improvement in talent is noticeable.