Top 5 college football coaches with highest buyouts heading into 2025 season ft. Kirby Smart

College football is typically dominated by a handful of elite programs that have the resources to spend a lot of money on their coaching staff. With the introduction of NIL in 2021, it is more important than ever for schools to have money because now they need to spend it on players.

Head coach contracts do not always have the same structure. However, they all typically come with a buyout clause. A buyout involves paying out a coach for the remainder of their contract so they can be replaced with someone new.

Contract buyouts can be quite large, but these are the five highest buyouts among college coaches heading into the 2025 college football season. These values are based on estimations following the end of the 2024 regular season.

Top 5 college football coaches with the highest buyouts heading into the 2025 season

#1 Kirby Smart, $118.1 million

Georgia Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart is signed to a massive 10-year, $130 million contract that runs through the end of the 2033 college football season. The contract is guaranteed if he is fired without cause before the end of the 2028 season, and afterward, it is 85% guaranteed. According to BetMGM, his contract buyout is $118.1 million.

#2 Kalen DeBoer, $70.1 million

Before the 2024 season, Kalen DeBoer was hired to replace legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban after he retired. DeBoer signed an eight-year contract worth $87 million. His contract is 90% guaranteed if he is fired without cause. As a result, if he is bought out, the Crimson Tide will owe him $70.1 million.

#3 Mike Norvell, $63.8 million

Following an ACC Championship win in 2023, Mike Norvell signed an eight-year contract extension at Florida State worth $80 million. If he is fired, his contract is 85% guaranteed. So, at the end of the regular season, his buyout was valued at $63.8 million.

#4 Brian Kelly, $61.7 million

Brian Kelly is on a contract with LSU that paid him $9.2 million this past season. His salary increases progressively until his final season on the contract, when he is set to be paid $10 million. According to BetMGM, this means his contract buyout was valued at $61.7 million at the end of the regular season.

#5 Dabo Swinney, $60 million

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney signed a 10-year, $115 million contract before the start of the 2022 season. He was the second-highest paid head coach in college football this past season, only ranking behind Georgia's Kirby Smart. However, since he is a few years into his contract, his buyout only ranks fifth.

He has a contract buyout clause that will pay him $60 million if he is fired in 2025. That number decreases to $57 million in 2026.