Ohio State paid out a record sum among college football programs for their assistant coaches last season.
This year, that figure has seen a significant increase, reaching the elite eight-figure threshold.
Per a report today from The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio State is set to pay $11.43 million in combined basic compensation to their 10-on field assistant coaches this fall.
Last season, the Buckeyes led all of college football when their assistant coach salary pool was $9.32 million.
A large chunk of that increase is çan be directed at the hire of Chip Kelly as the Buckeyes new offensive coordinator. Kelly is in the $2 million per year coordinator club with a three-year deal in Columbus, and he replaces Corey Dennis, who made $412,000 coaching the quarterbacks last season.
Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles also received a recent pay bump to bring his salary to $2.2 million
Since USA Today started to compile salary data for assistant coaches in 2009, the $11.43 million salary pool is the largest college football has ever seen.
However, Ohio State is not the first program to hit the eight-figure mark, as Kirby Smart and Georgia are set to pay assistant coaches $10.1 million for this fall.
The Buckeyes, like many other blue-blood programs in college football, are set to pay a number of assistants at least $1 million this fall including:
- Co-OC Brian Hartline - $1.6 million
- Secondary Coach Tim Walton - $1.4 million
- DL Coach Larry Johnson - $1.4 million
- OL Coach Justin Frye - $1 million
Newly hired running backs coach Carlos Locklyn will make $650k this year, while Matt Guerrieri (safeties) will earn $425k, Keenan Bailey (TEs) will make $400k and James Laurinaitis (LBs) will make $350k.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.