Governors hold plenty of power, but their paychecks are a fraction of the best college football coaches. A new study released by USA Today highlights how salaries of Football Bowl Subdivision coaches compare with the governors in their respective states.
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N.C. Governor Roy Cooper earns a salary of $144,000, about middle of the pack for the position, which ranges from $90,000 for Colorado’s Jared Polis to $202,000 for California’s Gavin Newsom.
But Gov. Cooper’s salary is less than 5% of UNC Chapel Hill football coach Mack Brown’s $3.5 million base. Brown, 68, ranks 39th among other FBS coach salaries. He returned to lead North Carolina’s football program this year after 16 years at the University of Texas. He previously was head coach in Chapel Hill from 1988-1997.
N.C. State University coach Dave Doeren’s base salary of $3.25 million places him 42nd among 130 FBS coaches, while Duke University’s David Cutcliffe earns $2.669 million annually, ranking 53rd. Wake Forest’s Dave Clawson, whose team is 25th in the AP Top 25 poll, earns $2.189 million. Mike Houston, head coach at East Carolina University, makes $1.425 million, ranking 81st.
Appalachian State University is getting most bang for their buck, at least this year. The Mountaineers, ranked 21st on the AP poll, pay first-year head coach Eliah Drinkwitz $750,000 a year.
Clemson University’s Dabo Swinney , whose teams have won two of the last three national championships, leads the coaches with $9.3 million in annual compensation.
Beyond base salaries, football coaches also earn money from broadcast shows, coaching camps, endorsements and other sources.
