5 Greatest-Paid Girls's College Basketball Coaches
5 Greatest-Paid Girls's College Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Ladies’s college basketball has noticed exponential advancement in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness over the past 10 years. Along with the enhanced level of popularity and professional success of the Activity, specifically in NCAA Division I programs, coaching salaries have risen to replicate the worth and leadership these best-tier coaches bring for their groups and universities. As universities continue on to take a position within their Ladies’s athletics departments, several standout coaches are reaping the monetary rewards that come with creating powerhouse applications.
Here’s a think about the five highest-compensated Girls’s higher education basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not just their impressive salaries but in addition the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Believed Annual Income: $3.one million
Dawn Staley carries on to be the gold conventional in Girls’s university basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has developed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Considering that taking over the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to multiple NCAA Closing Four appearances and two nationwide championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she manufactured headlines by signing a historic seven-12 months, $22.four million contract, earning her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in women's university basketball background. That deal has due to the fact been restructured and extended with efficiency incentives, placing her firmly at the highest of the record.
2. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Once-a-year Salary: $2.9 million
A residing legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to the jaw-dropping 11 nationwide titles. His tenure at UConn, which started in 1985, has reworked This system into Just about the most dominant dynasties in college or university basketball background—Gentlemen's or Women of all ages’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and steady effectiveness have ensured lucrative contract renewals. His existing agreement includes a base wage, media obligations, attire discounts, and significant bonuses tied to NCAA Match operates. When UConn has confronted new challenges with accidents and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and Management keep his value high.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State College (LSU)
Believed Once-a-year Income: $two.7 million
Immediately after A prosperous two-10 years operate at Baylor, the place she gained 3 national titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball environment by signing up for LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd season With all the Tigers, she led them to some 2023 national championship, bringing a new amount of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her higher-profile arrival came having a lucrative eight-yr, $23.6 million deal, generating her one among the highest-compensated Girls’s coaches ever. Noted for her passionate coaching type, flamboyant style, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in women's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Believed Yearly Income: $1.four million
Brenda Frese has quietly designed a design of regularity at Maryland due to the fact taking up in 2002. With multiple meeting championships, a national title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide contention for more than two decades.
Her very long-term impression and advancement of top-tier talent have built her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her present-day deal incorporates bonuses for academic effectiveness, wins, and postseason achievement—illustrating her twin determination to athletics and college student development.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Believed Annual Salary: $1.three million
Tara VanDerveer is don't just among the best-compensated coaches but additionally the winningest coach in NCAA Gals's basketball history. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get report and it has led Stanford to 3 national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and numerous Ultimate 4 appearances.
While VanDerveer has not been a person to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, growth of WNBA stars, and determination to excellence have solidified her place among the all-time greats in coaching background.
A Shifting Landscape in Gals's Basketball
The expanding salaries of such coaches are reflective of your growing reputation M88 and fiscal viability of ladies’s higher education basketball. Systems are attracting extra national TV specials, ticket revenue are escalating, and corporate sponsors are becoming more invested in women's sports.
The increase in coaching salaries is not simply a sign of development—it’s a recognition of your exertions, leadership, and achievement these coaches deliver for their systems plus the sport as a whole.
Honorable Mentions
When these five coaches presently guide the best way with regards to earnings, several others are rising:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Each individual of such coaches has designed considerable strides with their respective programs and will break in the best 5 in the coming decades as Girls's basketball proceeds to increase.
Final Feelings
The times of underfunded Females’s programs and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not simply command high salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, condition the tradition in their universities, and elevate women’s basketball to new heights. Since the Activity continues to increase in recognition and assist, we can assume these salaries—as well as profiles of these leaders—to continue mounting.
Women’s higher education basketball isn’t just holding pace—it’s environment the speed for the way forward for aggressive sports.