Money wins championships
- IU Football Board
- 25 Replies
It’s hard to have sustained success in the Power 5 without money. If IU wants to compete for Big Ten championships, it will need championship caliber assistant coaches. That said, the playing field is nowhere near level and strongly correlated with football stadium size. Ohio State’s revenue is $110 million more than IU’s: nearly double. This is why OSU can, for example, pay $1.2M to hire a Kevin Wilson to be offensive coordinator (same as his IU head coaching salary) and $1.1M to a Larry Johnson to coach the d-line and not stress out. That said, they have to because they spend almost all of their revenue. OSU can’t afford to not be a championship caliber football team. IU is 9th in conference. The other high revenue departments are the teams we get excited to beat on the field. You can see the numbers for yourself here:
Here’s a link to an article that discloses IU Football coach salaries.
Some things popped out at me:
- Strength coach Aaron Wellman is the highest paid assistant at $705k. This makes him the second highest paid strength coach in college football. This seems like a bit of overinvestment/paying too much, but maybe it will pay off someday. Right now, it seems that the money would be better spent reallocated to offensive assistant coach salaries (see below.) For reference, David Ballou made $400k at IU and makes $525k at Alabama. Here’s an article talking about how soft tissue injuries have decreased at Alabama since Ballou and Rhea. Coincidentally we’ve lost several key players this season to soft tissue injuries and of course Penix last year.
- Charlton Warren is next at $700k. This is $350k more than IU paid Wommack and is roughly what Wommack makes now at South Alabama. Mike Tressel made $695k at MSU. Warren made over $600k as the DB coach at Georgia. Top D-coordinators in the Big Ten are paid over $1M. Until IU is willing/able to pay that kind of money, the strategy will be to hire inexperienced coordinators every few years and hope they pan out.
- IU went cheap on offensive coordinator and line coach salaries and we’re feeling the effects. IU pays Sheridan and Hiller $500k each, which is peanuts compared to the best in the field. IU paid Deboer $800k and got its money’s worth. As I mentioned above, OSU pays Kevin Wilson $1.2M and has former NFL QB coach Ryan Day developing the QBs as well as running the show. Wisconsin pays Joe Rudolph $820k to be offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. DMac gets $515k. Heard gets $425k. Purdue has Brohm at what, $6M, his brother as QB/co-OC at almost $500k, and Jamarcus Shepherd as WR/co-OC for almost $500k.
- Justin Frye (IU ‘06) makes $700k at UCLA as their offensive coordinator and O-line coach under Chip Kelly. The only other person I can think of who was mentored by Chip Kelly is Ryan Day. He turned out ok.
Going cheap on OC and OL coaches is a fatal error. IU Athletics needs to find an extra $1-1.5M or so per year in salary and benefits to get a great offense out there. Easier said than done.
NCAA Finances: Revenue & Expenses by School - USA TODAY
Which are the most profitable college athletic programs in the country? See a ranked listed, including total revenue and expenses. Brought to you by USA TODAY.
sports.usatoday.com
Here’s a link to an article that discloses IU Football coach salaries.
IU football assistants get raises through marketing bonuses
BLOOMINGTON – When Indiana football coach Tom Allen earned a $1 million raise in February to increase his average annual salary to $4.9 million, he pushed for increased pay for
www.heraldbulletin.com
Some things popped out at me:
- Strength coach Aaron Wellman is the highest paid assistant at $705k. This makes him the second highest paid strength coach in college football. This seems like a bit of overinvestment/paying too much, but maybe it will pay off someday. Right now, it seems that the money would be better spent reallocated to offensive assistant coach salaries (see below.) For reference, David Ballou made $400k at IU and makes $525k at Alabama. Here’s an article talking about how soft tissue injuries have decreased at Alabama since Ballou and Rhea. Coincidentally we’ve lost several key players this season to soft tissue injuries and of course Penix last year.
Nick Saban Details Interesting Change Since Departure of Scott Cochran
Alabama head coach Nick Saban is commonly referred to as the GOAT; the greatest of all time when it comes to college football. And there are several reasons for
www.si.com
- Charlton Warren is next at $700k. This is $350k more than IU paid Wommack and is roughly what Wommack makes now at South Alabama. Mike Tressel made $695k at MSU. Warren made over $600k as the DB coach at Georgia. Top D-coordinators in the Big Ten are paid over $1M. Until IU is willing/able to pay that kind of money, the strategy will be to hire inexperienced coordinators every few years and hope they pan out.
- IU went cheap on offensive coordinator and line coach salaries and we’re feeling the effects. IU pays Sheridan and Hiller $500k each, which is peanuts compared to the best in the field. IU paid Deboer $800k and got its money’s worth. As I mentioned above, OSU pays Kevin Wilson $1.2M and has former NFL QB coach Ryan Day developing the QBs as well as running the show. Wisconsin pays Joe Rudolph $820k to be offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. DMac gets $515k. Heard gets $425k. Purdue has Brohm at what, $6M, his brother as QB/co-OC at almost $500k, and Jamarcus Shepherd as WR/co-OC for almost $500k.
- Justin Frye (IU ‘06) makes $700k at UCLA as their offensive coordinator and O-line coach under Chip Kelly. The only other person I can think of who was mentored by Chip Kelly is Ryan Day. He turned out ok.
Going cheap on OC and OL coaches is a fatal error. IU Athletics needs to find an extra $1-1.5M or so per year in salary and benefits to get a great offense out there. Easier said than done.