Remember when it was a newsworthy item when a college football assistant coach made $1 million? Nowadays, it's almost a bigger deal when a Power 5 coordinator hire doesn't make a million bucks.
As detailed by the latest edition of the USA Todayassistant coaching salary database, release Wednesday, 21 assistants hit seven figures in 2018. Those 21 coaches hailed from 15 different programs, representing each of the Power 5 conferences and stretching from South Carolina to Washington -- neither of them programs you'd think of breaking the bank for the sake of breaking the bank. Speaking of such programs, Ohio State carried three assistants past the $1 million mark while Alabama, Auburn and Michigan had two.
Here's the full list of million-dollar assistants:
1. Dave Aranda, LSU -- $2.5 million
2. Brent Venables, Clemson -- $2.2 million
3. Kevin Steele, Auburn -- $2.05 million
4. Mike Elko, Texas A&M -- $1.8 million
5. Jim Leavitt, Oregon -- $1.7 million
6. Greg Schiano, Ohio State -- $1.5 million
6. Mel Tucker, Georgia -- $1.5 million
8. Pep Hamilton, Michigan -- $1.45 million
9. Todd Grantham, Florida -- $1.402 million
10. Don Brown, Michigan -- $1.3 million
11. Tyson Helton, Tennessee -- $1.205 million
12. Mike Locksley, Alabama -- $1.2 million
12. Ryan Day, Ohio State -- $1.2 million
12. Travaris Robinson, South Carolina -- $1.2 million
15. Alex Grinch, Ohio State -- $1.158 million
16. Chip Lindsey, Auburn -- $1.1 million
16. Jimmy Lake, Washington -- $1.1 million
16. Tosh Lupoi, Alabama -- $1.1 million
16. Wes McGriff, Ole Miss -- $1.1 million
16. Todd Orlando, Texas -- $1.1 million
21. Harlan Barnett, Florida State -- $1.005 million
Given the transient nature of college football, this list is already out of date as Tucker (Colorado), Helton (Western Kentucky), Day (Ohio State) and Locksley (Maryland) have already moved on to head jobs, Lindsey left Auburn for Kansas and McGriff will not return at Ole Miss.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.