The Texas Tech football team had one of the highest-paid coaching staffs in the Big 12 this season. In fact, among public schools in the conference, Joey McGuire’s group of assistants was scheduled to be the highest-paid of those whose teams are going to bowl games.
According to data collected through open-records requests by USA TODAY Sports, contracts for the Red Raiders‘ 10 full-time assistants called for them to make slightly more than $5.3 million this year. Among records for the Big 12’s public schools, that trailed only Utah and Oklahoma State, an indication money can’t buy everything.
Utah was scheduled to pay its 10 primary assistant coaches a combined $8.25 million this season while going 5-7 and 2-7 in the Big 12. Oklahoma State was scheduled to pay its 10 main assistants a combined $6 million on the way to going 3-9 and 0-9 in conference.
The amounts do not include maximum-bonus opportunities.
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None of the three assistants who started the season as Texas Tech’s highest paid are still on staff. In a whirlwind few days right after the regular season, McGuire dismissed defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter and defensive passing game coordinator and secondary coach Marcel Yates, and Florida Atlantic hired offensive coordinator Zach Kittley to be the Owls’ head coach.
DeRuyter, making $1.05 million, and Yates, making $600,000, were approaching the end of the second year of three-year contracts. Both were signed through Jan. 31, 2026, so Tech owes both 70% of the remaining value of their deals, paid in monthly installments. The fired coaches have an obligation under their contracts to seek another job at a market rate, whereupon buy-out amounts would be lessened by their earnings over the next 14 months.
Language in Kittley’s contract stipulates he doesn’t owe Tech a buyout if he resigned to become a head coach in the NCAA or took a job in the NFL. He was making $850,000 this year.
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Kittley’s replacement appears likely to at least double his pay, based on Tech’s recent pattern of how it compensates its assistants. Mack Leftwich, hired Friday, just turned 30 and was making $350,000 this year in the same role at Texas State, according to the USA TODAY Sports survey.
Tech’s next highest-paid assistants are wide receivers coach Justin Johnson and running backs coach Kenny Perry, both at $550,000 and both with additional duties beyond their position-coach responsibilities. Perry is the Red Raiders’ associate head coach and special teams coordinator, and Johnson is assistant head coach and passing game coordinator.
Tech, 8-4 and 6-3 in the Big 12, is preparing for a Dec. 27 date in the Liberty Bowl with Arkansas, which went 6-6 and 3-5 in the Southeastern Conference.
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Big 12 members Baylor, BYU and TCU, being private institutions, do not make their contracts public.
Among the staffs of the 13 public schools in the Big 12, DeRuyter was one of five assistants who began the year with seven-figure deals. Andy Ludwig, Utah’s offensive coordinator since 2019, was scheduled to make $2.05 million this year, but stepped down on Oct. 20 after the Utes failed to reach 20 points three games in a row.
Utah defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley, on staff since 2007, is making $2 million this season.
The other highest-paid assistants at Big 12 public schools include Iowa State defensive coordinator Jon Heacock at $1.2 million and former Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn, who was making $1 million this year. Oklahoma State parted ways with Dunn and defensive coordinator Bryan Nardo last week.
Big 12 football assistant coaches pay rankings
Schools are listed in order of compensation to their 10 full-time assistants, not including maximum bonuses. Also shown are each school’s assistants who were making at least $500,000 this year. An asterisk (*) denotes a coach no longer on staff. Private schools Baylor, BYU and TCU do not make their contracts public.
Utah, $8.275 million
*Andy Ludwig, $2.05 million
Morgan Scalley, $2 million
Jim Harding, $850,000
Sharrieff Shah, $700,000
Lewis Powell, $600,000
Fred Whittingham, $525,000
Oklahoma State, $6 million
*Kasey Dunn, $1 million
*Bryan Nardo, $700,000
Charlie Dickey, $650,000
Joe Bob Clements, $650,000
Tim Duffie, $600,000
Dan Hammerschmidt, $500,000
Texas Tech, $5,301,190
*Tim DeRuyter, $1.05 million
*Zach Kittley, $850,000
*Marcel Yates, $600,000
Justin Johnson, $550,000
Kenny Perry, $550,000
Arizona State, $5.1 million
Marcus Arroyo, $830,000
Brian Ward, $800,000
Shaun Aguano, $750,000
Kansas State, $4.697 million
Joe Klanderman, $825,000
Conor Riley, $750,000
Matt Wells, $537,000
Kansas, $4.63 million
*Jeff Grimes, $800,000
Brian Borland, $600,000
Jim Zebrowski, $500,000
D.K. McDonald, $500,000
Colorado, $4,588,750
Pat Shurmur, $801,000
Robert Livingston, $800,750
Iowa State, $4.46 million
Jon Heacock, $1.2 million
Taylor Mouser, $550,000
Cincinnati, $4.39 million
Tyson Veidt, $750,000
Brad Glenn, $700,000
*Kerry Coombs, $600,000
West Virginia, $4.225 million
*Jordan Lesley, $775,000
Chad Scott, $700,000
Matt Moore, $525,000
ShaDon Brown, $500,000
Arizona, $4.2 million
Duane Akina, $750,000
*Dino Babers, $500,000
Central Florida, $4 million
Addison Williams, $700,000
Darin Hinshaw, $600,000
Tim Harris, $525,000
*Herb Hand, $500,000
Houston, $3.95 million
*Shiel Wood, $750,000
*Kevin Barbay, $750,000
