Top 25 highest-paid assistants in college football

As the 2025 college football coaching carousel gets into gear following the conclusion of the regular season, USA Today updated its list of the game’s highest-paid assistant coaches.

And, with many programs seeking college football’s next up-and-coming coach, it’s the perfect time to evaluate whether teams got real bang for their buck in 2024.

With an influx of coordinators taking on new opportunities this season, the USA Today ranking reflected the new coaching blood, with first-year LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker leading the way with his $2.5 million per year salary, just edging the $2.3 million/year salary of former NFL assistant Wink Martindale in his first season at Michigan.

Check out college football’s Top 25 highest-paid assistants below:

1. Blake Baker

LSU defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,500,000

In Baker’s first season in Baton Rouge following a two-year stint at Missouri, the 42-year-old Baker made steady improvement to a Tigers defense that ranked second-to-last in the SEC in 2023, finishing 11th in the 16-team league allowing 352.5 yards per game after giving up 416.6 ypg last season.

2. Wink Martindale

Michigan defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,300,000

In his first season in college following two decades in the NFL, Martindale’s Michigan defense took a slight step back in 2024, finishing the regular season eighth and sixth in the Big Ten allowing 20.5 points and 310.9 yards per game after leading the conference in 2023 (10.4 ppg/247 ypg).

3. Jim Knowles

Ohio State defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,200,000

The second-year Buckeyes coordinator more than earned his salary guiding the Big Ten’s No. 1-ranked defensive unit limiting opponents to just 10.9 points and 241.1 yards per game in 2024 after ranking in the Top 3 in 2023.

4. Pete Golding

Ole Miss defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,150,000

In his second season in Oxford after leaving Alabama, Golding directed a defensive turnaround that saw the Rebels finish the regular season as the SEC’s second-best scoring defense limiting teams to just 13.9 points and fourth allowing 313.8 yards per game in 2024.

5. Andy Ludwig

Utah offensive coordinator/QBs
Salary: $2,050,000

Ludwig’s Utes offense struggled in its first season in the Big 12, ranking in the bottom three of the 16-team league averaging 23.6 points and 329.8 yards per game. By comparison, it was on-par with how Utah performed last year in the Pac-12, averaging 23.2 pgp and 348.4 ypg in 2023.

6. Adam Fuller

Florida State defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,015,000

Fuller was fired by FSU head coach Mike Norvell amid a house-cleaning effort on Nov. 10 after the Seminoles struggled through a 1-9 start to the 2024 season. FSU’s defense was atrocious this season, ranking 14th in the ACC allowing 385.9 yards per game.

7. Glenn Schumann

Georgia defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,003,000

After three-consecutive seasons as the SEC’s No. 1-ranked defense, Schumann’s usually-elite unit struggled by comparison in 2024, ranking seventh in average points allowed (20.4 ppg) and ninth allowing 336.5 yards per game this season.

8. Chip Kelly

Ohio State offensive coordinator/QBs
Salary: $2,000,000

In his first season as the Buckeye’s playcaller, taking over those duties from head coach Ryan Day, the former Oregon skipper made an immediate impact as Ohio State averaged 423.5 yards and 35.5 points per game — both solid improvements from 2023 (407.9 ypg, 30.5 ppg).

9. Morgan Scalley

Utah defensive coordinator
Salary: $2,000,000

The longtime Utes coordinator continued Utah’s defensive dominance in its first season in the Big 12, finishing the regular season ranked second in the league in scoring defense (20.7 ppg) and third in total defense (329.7 ypg) after posting similar numbers last season in the Pac-12.

10. Tosh Lupoi

Oregon defensive coordinator
Salary: $1,900,000

Lupoi’s Ducks defense showed positive signs in its first season in the Big Ten, ranking fifth in total defense allowing 301.8 yards per game and sixth in scoring defense (17.8 ppg), which was not far off from Oregon’s Pac-12-leading scoring defense (16.5 ppg) in 2023.

College football’s highest-paid assistants No. 11-25

11. Phil Parker, Iowa defensive coordinator: $1.9 million
12. Pete Kwiatkowski, Texas defensive coordinator: $1.8 million
13. Garrett Riley, Clemson offensive coordinator: $1.75 million
14. Brad White, Kentucky defensive coordinator: $1.75 million
15. Charlie Weis Jr., Ole Miss offensive coordinator: $1.65 million
16. Tony White, Nebraska defensive coordinator: $1.6 million
17. Collin Klein, Texas A&M defensive coordinator: $1.6 million
18. Brian Hartline, Ohio State co-offensive coordinator: $1.6 million
19. Kane Wommack, Alabama defensive coordinator: $1.55 million
20. Travaris Robinson, Georgia co-defensive coordinator: $1.503 million
21. Tim Banks, Tennessee defensive coordinator: $1.5 million
22. Bobby Petrino, Arkansas offensive coordinator: $1.5 million
23. Joe Rossi, Michigan State defensive coordinator: $1.5 million
24. Kirby Moore, Missouri offensive coordinator: $1.5 million
25. Joe Harasymiak, Rutgers defensive coordinator: $1.5 million

Click here to view USA Today’s full list of assisant coaching salaries.