Being the head coach for a major college football program is among the most lucrative paying jobs in the world. In many cases, the head coach for a public university is the highest paid in their respective state.
In 2023, the average salary for a Power Five head football coach was $6.2 million, the highest number we’ve ever seen in the sport.
One of the ways that these contracts reach the crazy levels of money that they do is incentives, or bonuses, based on a determined level of success.
For Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham, reaching the nine-win mark paid major dividends this past weekend.
Dillingham is scheduled to make $3.85 million in 2024, but on Saturday, he received a $200K bonus for leading the Sun Devils to a 9-2 record ahead of the final weekend of the regular season.
Instead of holding onto that well-earned bonus, Dillingham leaned into the Holiday spirit and decided to spread the wealth with those around him.
According to Chris Karpman of 247Sports, Dillingham used that $200,000 to bless 20 off-field ASU staffers with bonuses of $5K-$10K apiece. The staffers didn’t know that the money came directly from his earnings, which makes it an even cooler gesture from the second-year coach.
Dillingham is beloved by the Tempe community, and that went back to the time before he’d started winning at his current rate.
As one of the most likable people in the profession, this is just another reason to root for ASU in the Big 12 and College Football Playoff race.
Arizona State (9-2) is on the road at Arizona (4-7) for their final game of the regular season, and would all but secure a spot in the Big 12 Championship with a victory on Saturday.
