On the eve of Arizona State playing in the College Football Playoff against Texas, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham has a new contract, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Per ESPN, Kenny Dillingham‘s five-year deal includes a “pathway” to extend out to 10 years, according to sources. While Arizona law limits state school contracts to five years, sources said incentives give the deal the runway to get to 10 years.
The new contract will put him near the top of the Big 12 football coaching salaries, according to ESPN. While not all coaching salaries are public, it’s believed that Mike Gundy was the highest-paid Big 12 coach in 2024 with a salary of nearly $8 million.
Arizona State was picked to finish last in the Big 12 Conference in 2024, their first in the Big 12, and ended up beating Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship Game. They receive the No. 4 seed in the College Football Playoff and will take on Texas on January 1st.
Dillingham is only 34 years old and is coaching in his second season at his alma mater after spending time working up the coaching ranks at Memphis, Auburn, Florida State and Oregon.
Related: ESPN Analytics: Arizona State Ended the 2024 Season as the Hottest Team in College Football
ESPN notes that the deal will come in concert with the addition of 20 more football scholarships next season, as rosters are set to expand to 105. The deal includes an increased commitment to staff, according to sources, and ASU also plans to be a full participant in revenue share.
Dillingham is currently among the lower tier of Big 12 coaches in base salary at $4.05 million. But he has already earned more than $2.5 million in bonuses after leading ASU to an 11-2 season and conference title. The additional bonus money puts him near the top of the league.
Arizona State takes on Texas in the Peach Bowl at 1:00 ET on Wednesday.
