Ohio State football coach Ryan Day, MSU's Mel Tucker top paid Big Ten football coaches
Chris PughThe new highest-paid college football coaches in the Big Ten do their work at Columbus and East Lansing, Michigan
Ryan Day's new $9.5 million annual contract which was announced Wednesday matches Michigan State coach Mel Tucker, who received a $95 million 10-year extension in November.
Day has been the coach of Ohio State for the past four seasons with a 34-4 record, while Tucker has been with Michigan State for two seasons, where he turned a team that finished 2-5 in 2020 to a 11-2 team in 2021, which included a 31-21 Peach Bowl win over Pitt.
Tucker, a Cleveland native, coached with Ohio State from 2001 to 2004.
Here's a list of what other Big Ten coaches make as part of their base contracts according to USA Today’s annual survey of college coaching salaries published in October.
Jim Harbaugh will make over $7 million annually with Michigan
In February, Harbaugh signed a reworked contract with Michigan that will pay him more than $7 million annually.
Pat Fitzgerald makes $5,748,179 annually with Northwestern
Fitzgerald has been the coach of Northwestern since 2006, which is the second-longest tenure in the conference behind Kirk Ferentz, who started at Iowa in 1999.
Scott Frost makes $5 million annually with Nebraska
Frost's total contract was reduced $166,667 due to the pandemic.
Kirk Ferentz makes $5 million annually with Iowa
Kirk Ferentz's total contract was reduced $100,000 due to the pandemic.
P.J. Fleck makes $4,420,000 annually with Minnesota
Fleck has lost $548,320 due to a pandemic contract reduction.
Jeff Brohm makes $4,417,774 annually with Purdue
Brohm's total salary has been reduced $873,340 due to a pandemic contract reduction.
Paul Chryst makes $4.362,750 million annually from Wisconsin
Chryst has lost $751,250 in total salary due to a pandemic contract reduction.
Tom Allen makes $4.26 million annually with Indiana
Allen has lost $50,000 in salary due to a pandemic contract reduction.
Bret Bielema makes $4.2 million annually with Illinois
Bielema, who previously has coached at Wisconsin and Arkansas, has been with Illinois since December 2020.
Greg Schiano makes $4 million annually at Rutgers
Schiano had a total pandemic contract reduction of $266,664. He coached with Ohio State between 2016-2018.
Mike Locksley makes $2,538,100 annually at Maryland
Locksley lost $265,500 due to a pandemic contract reduction.
