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Jim Harbaugh tops USA Today’s list of highest-paid coaches in college football
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Jim Harbaugh has been the most popular coach in America in 2016.
On and off the field, it’s hard to argue with that. His team dominated the offseason headlines and at 7-0, his team is dominating on the field, too.
How much compensation is Harbaugh worth? A lot, apparently.
According to the annual USA Today salary database, the Michigan coach was the highest-paid coach in America in 2016 by nearly $2.1 million. Nobody — not even Nick Saban — came close to Harbaugh’s $9,004,000 made.
To be fair, the $9 million isn’t all going into Harbaugh’s pocket. Part of it is because of a life insurance policy Michigan and Harbaugh agreed to over the summer.
Of that $9 million, $5 million is actual salary, which would technically put Harbaugh behind Saban, Urban Meyer, Bob Stoops, Jimbo Fisher and Charlie Strong. As part of that life insurance policy, Michigan agreed to loan Harbaugh $4 million in 2016 and an additional $2 million for the following five years to pay the premium.
Harbaugh actually doesn’t have to pay the policy back until he dies, assuming the policy stays active. If he leaves Michigan, he would have to pay the loan.
So having said that, here are the salaries for each B1G coach:
| NATIONAL RANK, B1G COACH | SCHOOL PAY | TOTAL PAY |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan | $9,004,000 | $9,004,000 |
| 3. Urban Meyer, Ohio State | $6,003,000 | $6,094,800 |
| 10. James Franklin, Penn State | $4,500,000 | $4,500,000 |
| 11. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa | $4,500,000 | $4,500,000 |
| 14. Mark Dantonio, Michigan State | $4,300,000 | $4,300,000 |
| 28. Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern | $3,350,638 | $3,350,638 |
| 42. Mike Riley, Nebraska | $2,800,000 | $2,800,000 |
| 43. Paul Chryst, Wisconsin | $2,700,000 | $2,706,200 |
| 46. DJ Durkin, Maryland | $2,412,000 | $2,412,000 |
| 50. Kevin Wilson, Indiana | $2,320,000 | $2,320,000 |
| 53. Darrell Hazell, Purdue | $2,190,000 | $2,190,000 |
| 57. Chris Ash, Rutgers | $2,000,000 | $2,000,000 |
| 59. Lovie Smith, Illinois | $1,809,179 | $1,809,179 |
| 68. Tracy Claeys, Minnesota | $1,400,000 | $1,400,000 |
Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Tradition. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.