Ohio State releases details of Jake Diebler's head coaching contract
COLUMBUS — Ohio State released the details of Jake Diebler’s new head coaching contract Monday. With his promotion from interim to full-time head coach, Diebler earned a five-year contract with a $2.5 million annual base salary.
The contract takes Diebler through the 2028-29 season. There are a handful of incentives built in:
- Big Ten champion or co-champion: $25,000
- Big Ten Tournament title: $50,000
- Participation in first round of NCAA Tournament (at-large selection): $25,000
- Participation in NCAA regional semifinals (Sweet 16): $50,000
- Participation in NCAA regional final (Elite Eight): $75,000
- Participation in NCAA semifinals (Final Four): $100,000
- Winning the national championship (if Diebler won the national, he would only receive the payment for the national championship and not be eligible for the Final Four payment): $250,000
- Big Ten or National Coach of the Year (total amount winning either or both awards): $50,000
- Annual cumulative team grade point average as calculated for the fall and spring semesters by May 30 of each year: $50,000 (if 3.0-3.4) or $100,000 (if 3.5-above)
“Ohio State is a special place,” Diebler said during his introductory press conference Monday. “I’ve talked about how that is my dream job. But it’s so special. This university, I’ve seen firsthand what it can do for those who are connected to it.”
Diebler continued: “I wasn’t good enough to play here. But I got to see the impact it had on my brother and my family, him being here how Buckeye Nation has supported him. The care, the love — it’s something I’ve always appreciated and valued.”
Jake Diebler’s brother Jon is the all-time 3-point record holder at Ohio State. Together, Jake and Jon won a Division II state title in the Schottenstein Center while playing for their father Keith at Upper Sandusky High School.
Diebler, 37, has spent a total of 10 years at Ohio State across two different stints. The second saw him rise to associate head coach and offensive coordinator.
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Most recently, however, the Valparaiso alum led the Buckeyes to a 6-2 record since taking over for seventh-year Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann, who was fired on Feb. 14 with four years left on his deal and six regular season games remaining. Holtmann is now the head coach at DePaul. And Diebler is now Holtmann’s full-time replacement after an inspiring month at the helm, during which the Buckeyes knocked on the door of the NCAA Tournament.
Incoming Ohio State Athletic Director Ross Bjork was asked about hiring Diebler despite his lack of long-term head coaching experience.
“To me, you have the wherewithal or you don’t,” said Bjork, who currently serves as Ohio State’s senior advisor for intercollegiate athletics and spearheaded the coaching search. “And actually if you break down the moves that were made during games, he outcoached coaches that have been doing this a long time.”
Diebler will officially start his tenure as head coach Tuesday night in the first round of the NIT, as the Buckeyes host Cornell at 7 p.m.
