Since his arrival in as head coach in 2013, Mark Stoops has flipped the perception of Kentucky as just a basketball school to a program with a football team to be proud of. Unsurprisingly, Stoops’ salary, contract, and net worth have all become much more lucrative after racking up more wins than losses in Lexington.
Mark Stoops’ Salary and Contract in 2023
If you’re looking for a glaring example of what Stoops has meant to the Kentucky college football program, consider this: Since the school began playing football as Kentucky State College in 1915, the Wildcats have had four double-digit win seasons. Stoops has engineered two of them.
If you’re wanting to quantify Stoops’ value to Kentucky’s football program, you need look no further than the contract extension that he signed in November 2022. An amendment to the five-year deal that he originally signed in November 2012, the Wildcats’ coach is now tied to the school until June 30, 2031.
Of course, in this modern college football world, there isn’t really such thing as tied — with buyouts woven into most contracts. However, as the result of a significant pay increase that we’ll unpack shortly, Stoops’ contract is now substantially less cost-effective to buy his way out of if he were to consider alternative employment.
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In the unlikely event that he is presented with an unmissable opportunity before June 30, 2023, Stoops’ contract stipulates that he would have to pay the university $4.5 million. The amount decreases through the life of his contract, with no payment due if Stoops demands release from his deal during the final year.
The new contract has made a substantial difference to Stoops’ salary as the Kentucky head coach for the upcoming season. Prior to the November 2022 extension, Stoops was due to earn $6.6 million between July 1, 2023, and June 30, 2024.
Now, Stoops’ salary is set at a fixed amount per year for the length of the contract starting on Feb. 1, 2023. Under the terms of that extension, the Kentucky coach will earn $8.6 million per year. The salary makes Stoops one of the highest-paid coaches in college football.
Stoops’ Net Worth
Stoops’ contract ties him to Kentucky for the next eight years, where he’ll earn a salary of $8.6 million each year. Unlike some of the more convoluted coach contracts, that makes calculating Stoops’ net worth a fairly simple affair.
The Kentucky head coach is worth $68.8 million for the duration of his contract, a tidy sum for bringing success to the historically basketball-centric school. However, this doesn’t include anything accrued prior to his most recent extension.
Furthermore, not calculated in Stoops’ salary and net worth are the additional financial incentives that come as a by-product of on-field success. Previously, there was a laundry list of bonus potential, but the extension simplified the Kentucky head coach’s bonus structure somewhat.
The most that Stoops can bolster his salary with is $800,000 if he leads Kentucky to a college football national title. If the Wildcats reach the College Football National Championship Game but aren’t successful, their head coach still adds $650,000 in additional salary.
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If Kentucky’s success dries up at the College Football Playoff semifinal stage, Stoops’ salary still gets a $500,000 bonus. Meanwhile, any appearance in a New Year’s Six game that doesn’t form the College Football Playoff earns the Kentucky head coach $300,000.
While he’s made Kentucky a serious contender in the SEC, the Wildcats have yet to hit those incentives markers. Yet, with seven consecutive bowl game appearances, Stoops would have ticked off a $100,000 bonus clause in his current contract.
Furthermore, an eight-win season — such as in three of the last five — nets an additional $50,000 on top of that bowl appearance figure.
As a result of his bonuses, Stoops’ salary could effectively be $9.4 million in 2023, although an amount of $8.75 million is far more likely. It still makes the Kentucky head coach one of the highest-paid coaches in college football, a just reward for the success he’s achieved for the Wildcats.
