5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches
5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches
Blog Article
Girls’s university basketball has viewed exponential advancement in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last ten years. With the enhanced level of popularity and business results with the Activity, particularly in NCAA Division I plans, coaching salaries have risen to reflect the worth and Management these prime-tier coaches carry to their groups and universities. As universities continue on to take a position within their Ladies’s athletics departments, a few standout coaches are reaping the financial benefits that include constructing powerhouse courses.
Below’s a consider the 5 optimum-paid women’s college or university basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not simply their amazing salaries but additionally the achievements that justify their elite payment.
1. Dawn Staley – College of South Carolina
Estimated Yearly Salary: $three.1 million
Dawn Staley continues to become the gold regular in Women of all ages’s college or university basketball coaching. A former WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has built South Carolina into a perennial powerhouse. Because taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to a number of NCAA Ultimate 4 appearances and two national championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she built headlines by signing a historic 7-12 months, $22.four million contract, earning her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in Females's college or university basketball historical past. That offer has because been restructured and extended with performance incentives, putting her firmly at the highest of the list.
2. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Believed Once-a-year Salary: $2.9 million
A residing legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to your jaw-dropping eleven national titles. His tenure at UConn, which began in 1985, has remodeled the program into One of the more dominant dynasties in school basketball historical past—Adult men's or women’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and steady effectiveness have ensured lucrative contract renewals. His existing agreement includes a base salary, media obligations, apparel bargains, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Tournament runs. Although UConn has faced latest issues with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership preserve his worth large.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State College (LSU)
Believed Once-a-year Wage: $2.7 million
After a successful two-ten years operate at Baylor, the place she gained three national titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball earth by becoming a member of LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd period Together with the Tigers, she led them into a 2023 national championship, bringing a brand new amount of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.
Her higher-profile arrival arrived that has a beneficial 8-year, $23.six million contract, making her one of the highest-paid women’s coaches at any time. Known for her passionate coaching style, flamboyant style, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Girls's hoops.
four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Believed Annual Income: $1.four M88 million
Brenda Frese has quietly developed a product of consistency at Maryland because taking on in 2002. With several meeting championships, a national title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Event appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide contention for more than twenty years.
Her prolonged-term affect and improvement of top rated-tier talent have manufactured her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic department. Her recent offer consists of bonuses for tutorial overall performance, wins, and postseason results—illustrating her dual dedication to athletics and university student improvement.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Believed Annual Salary: $1.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is don't just certainly one of the very best-paid out coaches but will also the winningest coach in NCAA Females's basketball heritage. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time gain record and has led Stanford to a few nationwide titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Closing 4 appearances.
While VanDerveer has never been one particular to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are properly compensated. Her Management, development of WNBA stars, and commitment to excellence have solidified her spot One of the all-time greats in coaching heritage.
A Switching Landscape in Women's Basketball
The escalating salaries of those coaches are reflective in the increasing level of popularity and economical viability of girls’s college or university basketball. Programs are attracting additional nationwide Tv set discounts, ticket income are rising, and corporate sponsors have gotten additional invested in Gals's athletics.
The rise in coaching salaries is not simply an indication of development—it’s a recognition with the labor, leadership, and success these coaches bring for their packages as well as the sport in general.
Honorable Mentions
Although these five coaches now direct the way in which in terms of earnings, quite a few Some others are increasing:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Every of such coaches has created substantial strides with their respective programs and will crack in the leading 5 in the coming yrs as Ladies's basketball proceeds to expand.
Remaining Ideas
The times of underfunded Ladies’s systems and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not just command superior salaries—they also mentor generations of athletes, form the society of their universities, and elevate Gals’s basketball to new heights. Because the sport proceeds to develop in level of popularity and assistance, we could expect these salaries—along with the profiles of such leaders—to carry on growing.
Gals’s college basketball isn’t just trying to keep speed—it’s location the pace for the future of competitive athletics.