5 Best-Compensated Women's Higher education Basketball Coaches

Women’s faculty basketball has seen exponential growth in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness over the past decade. Together with the amplified popularity and commercial success from the Activity, specifically in NCAA Division I systems, coaching salaries have risen to reflect the worth and Management these top rated-tier coaches deliver to their teams and universities. As universities keep on to invest inside their Girls’s athletics departments, some standout coaches are reaping the economical benefits that come with developing powerhouse programs.

In this article’s a consider the five best-paid out Ladies’s school basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing don't just their outstanding salaries but in addition the achievements that justify their elite compensation.

1. Dawn Staley – College of South Carolina
Approximated Annual Wage: $three.1 million

Dawn Staley proceeds to get the gold regular in Gals’s higher education basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has created South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Considering that taking over the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to various NCAA Ultimate 4 appearances and two national championships (2017 and 2022).

In 2021, she designed headlines by signing a historic seven-yr, $22.four million deal, producing her the best-paid Black head coach in Gals's school basketball heritage. That offer has given that been restructured and prolonged with efficiency incentives, inserting her firmly at the best of this checklist.

2. Geno Auriemma – College of Connecticut
Believed Once-a-year Salary: $2.9 million

A living legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies into a jaw-dropping eleven countrywide titles. His tenure at UConn, which commenced in 1985, has transformed the program into The most dominant dynasties in college or university basketball history—Guys's or Girls’s.

Auriemma’s longevity and dependable overall performance have ensured rewarding agreement renewals. His recent agreement features a base wage, media obligations, attire discounts, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Match runs. Although UConn has faced latest issues with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership maintain his value higher.

3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana Point out College (LSU)
Approximated Yearly Salary: $2.seven million

Just after A prosperous two-10 years run at Baylor, exactly where she won a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball globe by joining LSU in 2021. In only her 2nd period Using the Tigers, she led them to a 2023 countrywide championship, bringing a completely new stage of excitement and Highlight to Baton Rouge.

Her significant-profile arrival came having a lucrative eight-yr, $23.six million agreement, creating her one of the best-paid women’s coaches at any time. Known for her passionate coaching design and style, flamboyant vogue, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Females's hoops.

four. Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
Believed Yearly Income: $1.four million

Brenda Frese has quietly developed a design of consistency at Maryland considering the fact that taking up in 2002. With multiple convention championships, a countrywide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Match appearances, Frese has saved the Terrapins in nationwide rivalry for over 20 years.

Her lengthy-expression influence and progress of best-tier expertise have made her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Section. Her current deal incorporates bonuses for academic effectiveness, wins, and postseason achievement—illustrating her dual motivation to athletics and student growth.

five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Estimated Annual Wage: $one.three million

Tara VanDerveer is don't just among the very best-compensated coaches but will also the winningest coach in NCAA Females's basketball heritage. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time gain record and has led Stanford to three national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Closing 4 appearances.

Though VanDerveer hasn't been 1 to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are appropriately compensated. Her leadership, advancement of WNBA stars, and motivation to excellence have solidified her position Among the many all-time greats in coaching record.

A Changing Landscape in Women's Basketball
The growing salaries of these coaches are reflective from the developing acceptance and fiscal viability of ladies’s higher education basketball. Applications are attracting much more nationwide Television discounts, ticket income are rising, and corporate sponsors have gotten extra invested in women's sporting activities.

The increase in coaching salaries is not only a sign of development—it’s a recognition on the labor, leadership, and achievements these coaches provide to their courses as well as the Activity as a whole.

Honorable Mentions
Though these 5 coaches currently guide the best way with regard to earnings, many Other individuals are on the rise:

Kelly Graves (Oregon)

Vic Schaefer (Texas)

Jeff Walz (Louisville)

Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)

Each individual of those coaches has made major strides with their respective applications and could crack into your best five in the approaching many years as women's basketball continues to develop.

Remaining Ideas
The times of underfunded Ladies’s plans and M88 underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches not merely command significant salaries—Additionally they mentor generations of athletes, condition the tradition in their universities, and elevate women’s basketball to new heights. Since the Activity continues to expand in popularity and help, we can easily count on these salaries—plus the profiles of these leaders—to continue climbing.

Women of all ages’s university basketball isn’t just preserving rate—it’s setting the tempo for the future of competitive athletics.