Ohio State coach Jim Tressel pockets 10 grand for ambling by a Coca-Cola event. Louisville sends its new coach, Charlie Strong, on a paid annual vacation that lasts a month. Gary Pinkel's contract with Missouri gives him control of a $25,000 fund that he can use for the, uh, betterment of the team.
Big-time coaches have perks that make Wall Street bankers blush. And to find out how the biggest make out, The File reviewed the contracts of 53 of the 70 highest-paid FBS coaches from top tier public institutions (private ones like Duke are exempt from public disclosure laws). As it turns out, having a seven-figure salary is just the start.
On the air
You'd think that coaches would be talked out after game day, but many of them can't wait to do their own radio shows -- and our review of their contracts shows why. Texas' Mack Brown, who has the nation's highest paying contract at $5.1 million annually, pockets a whopping $875,000 for talking X's and O's to his fans on radio and TV. That's actually more than 47 of his colleagues earn in total, but it pales to the Rush Limbaugh-like $1.4 million average that Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson will earn every year through 2015 for hosting his eponymously named radio show, or the $1.65 million that is part of Rich Rodriguez's multimedia payday at Michigan.
1. Rich Rodriguez, Michigan: $1.65 million (Includes "TV, radio, Internet, shoe and/or apparel sponsorships" and other promotions.)
2. Jim Tressel, Ohio State: $1.38 million (Includes media promotions and PR.)
3. Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech: $1.3 million (in 2010)
4. Les Miles, LSU: $975,000
5. Mack Brown, Texas: $875,000
6. Mark Richt, Georgia: $800,000
Flight time
Oklahoma's Bob Stoops makes $4.1 million annually. Not included in that total: 45 hours of private flight time. Many coaches sign contracts that allow for "reasonable plane use," but Stoops is one of four guys with specific clauses for personal, nonbusiness jet travel. Translation: Any time. Any place. No charge for carry-ons.
1. Bob Stoops, Oklahoma: 45 hours
2. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa: 35 hours
3. Nick Saban, Alabama: 25 hours
4. Jim Tressel, Ohio State: 20 hours
On the ground
You can't expect a coach to pile up those recruiting miles on his own wheels, can you? Most of the coaching contracts we reviewed contain a provision for the coach to receive at least one car, and more than half of them (31) allowed for a deuce. (Hey, if one car is dirty, you just send it off to be cleaned and drive the other.) Add in insurance payments, and you get a tight race for the richest ride. We're giving a slight edge to Clemson's Dabo Swinney, who gets two new cars every year.
1. Dabo Swinney, Clemson: Two new cars annually.
2. Turner Gill, Kansas: Two cars, "the model of which shall be the highest line of the manufacturer."
3. Gene Chizik, Auburn: Two cars, plus gas and service payments for both.
4. Kevin Sumlin, Houston: Two cars, plus university-issued gas cards.
5. Greg Schiano, Rutgers: One Cadillac Escalade.
File under ...
Lucky to escape: This Boston Police Department report describing Tom Brady's Sept. 9 collision with a minivan mentions that the impact was so intense it toppled a steel pole holding up a traffic light at a busy intersection. Amazingly, Brady walked away from his crumpled Audi unhurt. For those doubting he's tough enough to justify his new deal, worth an average of $18 million a season, we say nuff said.
Floyd Mayweather's bad vacation: About 90 minutes before Brady's accident, Floyd Mayweather barged into the Las Vegas home of his son's mother, Josie Harris, allegedly screaming that he was going to have her and her new boyfriend "taken care of." After police escorted him out, he re-entered through his son's room and, Harris claims in this request for a Family Court order of protection, "yelled fiercely at [her three] children as he continued to beat me in front of them that if they ran or tried to call the police, he would beat them the same way." Since Mayweather lost out on the chance to fight Manny Pacquiao, he's declared that he'll be on vacation for the next year. If this is what he does with down time, this guy needs to get back to work, and fast.
Dodger divorce drama: It's usually the kids who get hurt in the divorce. But in the case of Los Angeles Dodgers owners Frank and Jamie McCourt, three fans are claiming that they're the ones with lasting damage. The fans -- Albert Perez, Gerardo Rodriguez and Alfredo Rodriguez -- blame security understaffing at a USC/UCLA game that was held at Dodger Stadium in February for injuries sustained in a bathroom brawl during the game. They say McCourt purposely hired too few security guards because he's trying to publicly demonstrate that he doesn't have as much money as his wife claims in court. Give the fans credit for being creative. McCourt knowing what's going on in Dodger Stadium? A Dodgers spokesman refused comment.
The hit king: Saturday night marked the first time that Pete Rose was allowed to take part in an official Cincinnati Reds event since his banishment from baseball in 1989. The Reds called him out at Great American Ball Park to commemorate the 25th anniversary celebration of record-setting hit No. 4,192. But the night was bittersweet, as MLB refused to let him address the crowd. All these years later, MLB still wants to make sure that this report speaks the loudest about Rose.
Additional research assistance by Ben Arledge and Dale Brauner.
