Big Ten Men’s Basketball Coach Salaries (2026–27)
Pay for the head coach at every Big Ten men’s basketball program, from news reports and public records. Each figure is labeled with how well it is confirmed. Women’s programs: Big Ten women’s basketball coach salaries.
Key numbers
- Median head coach pay: about $4.35 million across 18 programs. The average is about $4.5 million.
- Range: $2.5 million (Ohio State’s Jake Diebler) to $7.2 million (Michigan State’s Tom Izzo). USA Today data cited by SI ranks Diebler lowest and Minnesota’s Niko Medved second lowest.
- Fifteen of 18 coaches earn between $3.2 million and $5.6 million. Only Izzo and Purdue’s Matt Painter ($7.0 million, unconfirmed) are above that band.
- Two jobs changed hands after the 2025–26 season. Michigan’s Dusty May left to coach the Dallas Mavericks (June 23, 2026), and Oregon’s Dana Altman retired (Oct. 7, 2026). Pay for their replacements is not public.
Head coach pay by school
| School | Head coach | Pay | Season | Source | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan State | Tom Izzo | $7,200,000 | 2025–26 | News report | $1M raise reported Dec. 2025; five-year deal that renews annually |
| Purdue | Matt Painter | $7,000,000 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | |
| Illinois | Brad Underwood | $5,550,000 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | Listed as $4.4M base + $1.15M retention |
| USC | Eric Musselman | $4.75M–$5.0M | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | Private school; pay is not published |
| Maryland | Buzz Williams | $4,900,000 | 2026–27 | News report | Six-year deal reported at $33.3M or more; $100k annual escalator |
| Michigan | Mike Boynton Jr. | Not disclosed | 2026–27 | — | Named July 10, 2026 on a two-year deal. Predecessor Dusty May: $4,650,000 (2025–26) |
| Indiana | Darian DeVries | $4,500,000 | 2026–27 | News report | Six years, $27M, plus incentives (average per year) |
| UCLA | Mick Cronin | $4,500,000 | 2025–26 | Conflicting | USA Today projected $6.1M for 2025–26 |
| Iowa | Ben McCollum | $4,350,000 | 2026–27 | Partly confirmed | Six-year deal with a $1M raise after the Elite Eight run; new total not found |
| Nebraska | Fred Hoiberg | $4,350,000 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | |
| Penn State | Mike Rhoades | $4,229,999 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | |
| Rutgers | Steve Pikiell | $4,050,000 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | |
| Oregon | Tony Stubblefield (interim) | Not disclosed | 2026–27 | — | Predecessor Dana Altman: $4,000,000 (2025–26) |
| Northwestern | Chris Collins | $3,890,000 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | Private school; reported from tax filings |
| Wisconsin | Greg Gard | $3,850,000 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | |
| Washington | Danny Sprinkle | $3,300,024 | 2025–26 | Unconfirmed | |
| Minnesota | Niko Medved | $3,200,000 | 2025–26 | Conflicting | Reported $3.0M start with $100k annual raises; signed through 2031–32 |
| Ohio State | Jake Diebler | $2,500,000 | 2025–26 | News report | Lowest in the league per USA Today data |
Sorted by pay (midpoint where a range is given; replaced coaches sorted by their predecessor’s figure). Source: “News report” means a news outlet reported the figure; “Partly confirmed” means the contract was reported but the amount was not; “Conflicting” means reports differ; “Unconfirmed” means we found no second source. No contract documents were read for this conference.
What the numbers show
- Six-year deals are the standard for recent hires. DeVries (Indiana, 2025), Williams (Maryland, 2025), McCollum (Iowa) and Medved (Minnesota, through 2031–32) are all on six-year contracts.
- Raises are built in. Medved’s reported $3.0M start rises $100,000 a year. Williams’s deal has a guaranteed $100,000 annual escalator. McCollum received a $1M raise after one Elite Eight season.
- Incentives are modest next to base pay. DeVries earns $125,000 for a Big Ten regular-season title, about 3% of his average annual pay.
- Michigan chose a short, conditional contract. Boynton’s two-year deal is reported as a “prove it” contract, with goals he must meet to coach a second season, including no Level I or II NCAA violations.
- Base pay is often a small share of the total. Our records split Izzo’s pay as $2.43M base plus supplemental pay, and list Maryland’s, Minnesota’s and Iowa’s coaches with base pay of $400,000–$500,000 and the rest supplemental. These splits were not independently confirmed.
Assistant coach and staff pay
Associate head coach, assistant coach and director of operations pay at Big Ten programs, listed by school and title only. Most figures are not confirmed against payroll records; see the source labels below the table.
| School | Title | Salary | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | Associate Head Coach | $900,000 | News report |
| Illinois | Assistant Coach / Recruiting Coordinator | $543,133 | Unconfirmed |
| Illinois | Assistant Coach / Offensive Coordinator | $465,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Illinois | Director of Basketball Operations | $125,000–$155,000 | School pay range |
| Indiana | Assistant Coach | $750,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Indiana | Assistant Coach | $650,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Indiana | Assistant Coach | $400,000 | News report |
| Indiana | Assistant Coach | $300,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Indiana | Assistant Coach | $200,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Indiana | Director of Basketball Operations | $115,000–$140,000 | School pay range |
| Indiana | Special Assistant to the Head Coach | $175,000–$225,000 | School pay range |
| Iowa | Associate Head Coach | $475,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Iowa | Assistant Coach | $385,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Iowa | Assistant Coach | $325,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Iowa | Director of Basketball Operations | $120,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Maryland | Assistant Head Coach / Executive Director | $450,000–$525,000 | School pay range |
| Maryland | Assistant Coach | $300,000–$375,000 | School pay range |
| Maryland | Assistant Coach | $250,000–$320,000 | School pay range |
| Michigan | Assistant Coach | $473,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Michigan | Assistant Coach | $407,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Michigan | Assistant Coach | $247,500 | Unconfirmed |
| Michigan | Assistant Coach | $247,500 | Unconfirmed |
| Michigan State | Associate Head Coach | $600,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Michigan State | Assistant Coach | $375,000–$425,000 | School pay range |
| Michigan State | Assistant Coach | $275,000–$325,000 | School pay range |
| Michigan State | Assistant Coach | $250,000–$300,000 | School pay range |
| Minnesota | Associate Head Coach | $300,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Minnesota | Assistant Coach | $250,000–$300,000 | School pay range |
| Minnesota | Assistant Coach | $225,000–$275,000 | School pay range |
| Nebraska | Associate Head Coach / Defensive Coordinator | $520,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Nebraska | Assistant Coach | $420,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Nebraska | Assistant Coach / General Manager | $180,000–$220,000 | School pay range |
| Northwestern | Associate Head Coach | $400,000–$480,000 | School pay range |
| Northwestern | Assistant Coach | $260,000–$320,000 | School pay range |
| Northwestern | Assistant Coach | $220,000–$280,000 | School pay range |
| Ohio State | Associate Head Coach | $425,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Ohio State | Assistant Coach | $300,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Ohio State | Assistant Coach | $295,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Ohio State | Assistant Coach | $185,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Oregon | Assistant Coach | $325,000–$385,000 | School pay range |
| Oregon | Assistant Coach | $300,000–$360,000 | School pay range |
| Oregon | Assistant Coach | $220,000–$275,000 | School pay range |
| Penn State | Associate Head Coach | $425,000–$500,000 | School pay range |
| Penn State | Assistant Coach | $300,000–$375,000 | School pay range |
| Penn State | Assistant Coach | $250,000–$320,000 | School pay range |
| Purdue | Associate Head Coach | $500,000–$575,000 | School pay range |
| Purdue | Assistant Coach | $375,000–$425,000 | School pay range |
| Purdue | Assistant Coach | $160,000–$200,000 | School pay range |
| Rutgers | Associate Head Coach | $850,000 ($750,000 base + $100,000 retention bonus) | News report |
| Rutgers | Assistant Coach | $320,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Rutgers | Assistant Coach | $225,000–$275,000 | School pay range |
| UCLA | Associate Head Coach | $445,417 | Unconfirmed |
| UCLA | Assistant Coach | $300,000–$360,000 | School pay range |
| UCLA | Assistant Coach | $180,000–$220,000 | School pay range |
| USC | Associate Head Coach | $500,000–$600,000 | School pay range |
| USC | Associate Head Coach | $450,000–$550,000 | School pay range |
| USC | Assistant Coach | $320,000–$390,000 | School pay range |
| USC | Assistant Coach | $280,000–$350,000 | School pay range |
| USC | Assistant Coach | $250,000–$320,000 | School pay range |
| Washington | Associate Head Coach | $425,000–$500,000 | School pay range |
| Washington | Assistant Coach | $350,000–$420,000 | School pay range |
| Washington | Assistant Coach | $350,000–$400,000 | School pay range |
| Wisconsin | Associate Head Coach | $460,000 | Unconfirmed |
| Wisconsin | Assistant Coach | $260,000–$310,000 | School pay range |
| Wisconsin | Assistant Coach | $220,000–$270,000 | School pay range |
“News report” means a news outlet reported the figure (Illinois’s associate head coach at $900,000; one Indiana assistant’s $400,000 base; Rutgers’s associate head coach at a $750,000 base plus a $100,000 retention bonus). “School pay range” is the range the school uses for the position, not an individual’s salary. “Unconfirmed” is a single figure from state payroll records or university disclosures that we could not check. Treat unconfirmed figures and ranges as approximate. Staffs at Michigan and Oregon may have changed with their new head coaches.
Data notes
- Public universities’ contracts are public records, but few are posted online. USC and Northwestern are private; their figures come from tax filings and press reports.
- Figures are for 2026–27 where the coach is new or re-signed, and 2025–26 otherwise. Coaches who left after 2025–26 are shown by their replacement, with the predecessor’s last figure in the notes.
- Painter ($7.0M) and Underwood ($5.55M) differ from USA Today’s 2024–25 list ($4.85M and $4.8M). That list is older, so we treat their figures as unconfirmed rather than wrong.
Photo: Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, the Big Ten’s highest-paid men’s coach. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, U.S. government work (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons; cropped.
