Dabo Swinney's salary: Where Clemson football's coach ranks among FBS, ACC rivals in pay
CLEMSON — Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney is still among the highest-paid coaches in FBS.
The 16-year Tigers coach will make $11,132,775 in 2024, the second most in college football behind only Georgia coach Kirby Smart. Clemson will pay Swinney $11,008,575, and he will net in $124,200 in "other pay." His buyout amount is also $60 million as of Dec. 1, 2024.
Swinney can make at most $1.5 million in bonuses from performance incentives, like winning eight or more games to play in a postseason bowl game, winning ACC coach of the year and making the conference championship and College Football Playoff. He netted $175,000 in bonuses last year.
Swinney earned $75,000 for making a non-CFP bowl game after the Tigers went 9-4 in the regular season in 2023 to face Kentucky in the Gator Bowl. He and his football coaches also shared $100,000 after Swinney's team had a near perfect academic progress rate (APR) score, making 997 out of 1,000. Coaches share the bonus money if the team scores 975 or greater.
Swinney signed a 10-year, $115 million deal with Clemson in September 2022. The contract runs through 2031. Last year, he was the second-highest paid coach in college football, making $10.9 million behind then-Alabama coach Nick Saban ($11.4 million).
Here is where Swinney stands among FBS coaches, according to the USA TODAY Sports database.
Where Dabo Swinney's 2024 salary ranks among top FBS coaches
Coach | Total pay |
Georgia's Kirby Smart | $13.28 million |
Clemson's Dabo Swinney | $11.13 million |
Texas' Steve Sarkisian | $10.6 million |
Southern California's Lincoln Riley | $10.04 million |
Ohio State's Ryan Day | $10.02 million |
Alabama's Kalen DeBoer | $10 million |
Florida State's Mike Norvell | $10 million |
LSU's Brian Kelly | $9.98 million |
Kentucky's Mark Stoops | $9.01 million |
Mississippi's Lane Kiffin | $9 million |
Missouri's Eliah Drinkwitz | $9 million |
Tennessee's Josh Heupel | $9 million |
Penn State's James Franklin | $8.5 million |
Oregon's Dan Lanning | $8.2 million |
Oklahoma's Brent Venables | $8.15 million |
Only two ACC coaches are represented in the top 15 of FBS coaches' pay. The SEC leads with nine, and the Big Ten has four.
Note: "Other pay" numbers were not available for Day, DeBoer, Heupel, Franklin and Lanning.
MORE: How Clemson football gave Dabo Swinney his ACC-record 174th win, passing Bobby Bowden, at FSU
Where Dabo Swinney's salary ranks among ACC football coaches
Coach | Total pay |
Clemson's Dabo Swinney | $11.13 million |
Florida State's Mike Norvell | $10 million |
Miami's Mario Cristobal | $7.78 million |
Pittsburgh's Pat Narduzzi | $6.7 million |
NC State's Dave Doeren | $5.97 million |
Louisville's Jeff Brohm | $5.63 million |
North Carolina's Mack Brown | $5 million |
Wake Forest's Dave Clawson | $4.78 million |
Virginia Tech's Brent Pry | $4.78 million |
California's Justin Wilcox | $4.6 million |
Virginia's Tony Elliot | $4.25 million |
Georgia Tech's Brent Key | $2.9 million |
SMU's Rhett Lashlee | $2.36 million |
Note: Syracuse coach Fran Brown, Duke coach Manny Diaz, Boston College coach Bill O'Brien and Stanford coach Troy Taylor's pay isn't available. "Other pay" numbers were not available for Cristobal, Narduzzi, Brohm, Clawson and Lashlee.
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at dcarter@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Dabo Swinney: Where Clemson football coach ranks among coaches in pay
