Shadow of the Stadium: Strong's Deal with USF Worth $9.8 Million (maybe*)

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Strong's Deal with USF Worth $9.8 Million (maybe*)

Charlie Strong's new head coaching contract at USF will pay him $9.8 million over the next five years, with the majority of the salary coming in the back half of the deal, according to the deal just released by the university.

The contract also sets a buyout figure of up to $2.5 million if Strong, the former head coach at the University of Texas, leaves USF for another job before the end of the five-year deal. The buyout would drop to $1.7 million if Strong were to leave in 2020 or 2021, prior to the Dec. 31, 2021 expiration of his contract.

The deal, signed this week, also guarantees the former University of Texas coach perks such as:

A country club membership;
A courtesy vehicle or $800/mo stipend;
Revenues from football camps Strong runs at USF;
A suite at all home football games plus six season tickets;
Four season tickets to all USF home basketball games.

By contrast, former coach Willie Taggart, who left USF for Oregon, received a similar salary and most of the same perks. But Taggart's contract also included a number of additional performance bonuses and a second vehicle (or stipend of $1,200/mo).

Strong's assistant coach salary pool will also grow from $1.6 million in 2017 to $3.4 million in 2019. Taggart's pool was $2.4 million in 2016.