The Jimbo Fisher salary saga is one of the most storied in college football. However, it’s not just because of how much he was paid. The now-former Texas A&M Aggies coach had a buyout bigger than any other in the sport, and was thought to have made him one of the most secure coaches regardless of results.
Breaking down Fisher’s salary, contract, and net worth is a fascinating adventure into CFB finances.
Jimbo Fisher’s Salary and Contract in 2023
Fisher signed his first contract with Texas A&M in December 2017. After guiding the Aggies to 26 wins and three bowl-game successes, he was rewarded with a contract extension in September 2021, one that made him one of the highest-paid — and most secure — head coaches in all of college football.
The contract extension was set to Fisher in College Station through the 2031 season. While there’s no such thing as a sure thing in college football, the structure of Fisher’s contract means that whether he’s coaching at Kyle Field or sitting watching the Aggies from a beach in the Bahamas, he’s going to get paid.
Unless he’s fired for cause, Texas A&M will owe Fisher every last dollar of his salary regardless of when he’s relieved of his duties. Whatever the outstanding amount at the time of his firing, Fisher must be paid 25% of it within 120 days.
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He’ll then take home a sizeable installment annually until the end of this contract in 2031. Fisher essentially has a 10-year, fully guaranteed contract, the likes of which has never been seen before for a CFB head coach.
So, let’s talk about the numbers behind Fisher’s salary, starting with how much he’ll earn for the 2023 season. Jimbo has a fixed base salary of $500,000 for each year of his deal, which is bolstered by a supplemental salary that increased by $100,000 in each of the remaining years of his contract.
So for 2023 — and this doesn’t include the financial incentives woven into his contract — Fisher’s salary is $9.15 million. That’s comprised of the $500,000 base and $8.65 million supplemental.
UPDATE, November 12, 2023: This buyout came back to bite Texas A&M after Fisher was relieved of his duties following a Week 11 victory over Mississippi State. The Aggies fired Fisher and are set to honor the non-offset buyout of Fisher’s contract. Fisher will make the $76 million in full.
Fisher’s Net Worth
As a result of his salary and the terms of his latest contract extension, Fisher has a net worth of $94.95 million. While it seems like an insane amount of money, don’t forget that the Texas A&M coach will receive the entire amount regardless of whether he’s successful or not — unless fired for cause.
Before we go on to explain how this figure is actually Fisher’s minimum net worth, it’s worth providing some performance-related context. If Texas A&M were to relieve him of his duties before the start of the 2023 college football season, Fisher would have earned $2,434,615 for each Aggies win during his tenure.
Meanwhile, he would have earned $1,582,500 for each game he’s been in charge. Of course, these numbers are just a little illustration and don’t take into account Fisher’s salary from the first three seasons of his time in College Station.
So, Fisher’s net worth between now and 2031 is $94.95 million. But, as we said earlier, this is the very minimum that the Texas A&M head coach will earn during the duration of his current contract. Fisher can boost his salary with a series of performance and academic-related bonuses.
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The most substantial of these, unsurprisingly, is a $1 million bonus for guiding Texas A&M to a national title. Just reaching the College Football National Championship Game nets Fisher a cool $500,000. If they reach that stage having won the SEC Championship Game, that’s another $200,000.
However, Fisher doesn’t have to guide Texas A&M to the College Football Playoff to trigger a salary bonus. There’s $100,000 thrown in for appearing in a bowl game, which is doubled for a non-CFB Playoff New Year’s Six game.
Being named the National Coach of the Year nets Fisher another $100,000, while being named SEC Coach of the Year earns him a steady $50,000. The Texas A&M head coach is also rewarded — to the tune of $150,000 — if the team’s APR (Academic Progress Rate) is 965 or higher. That was the case in 2018-2019.
Furthermore, Fisher gets several additional benefits that include a private aircraft, two luxury vehicles, 12-16 complimentary season tickets, and a country club membership. Of course, he’ll lose all these if he’s fired during his current contract, but Fisher will still have over $90 million reasons to not worry too much about the loss of those perks of the job.