Here is what Kentucky football will pay its new coordinators, general manager
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Coordinators paid $1.3M next season; salary increases $500K each contract year.
- Contracts include $1M early buyouts before Dec. 1, 2026; $300K yearly after.
- UK set position coaches salaries from $450K to $575K; GM pay at $500K.
Each of Kentucky football’s new coordinators will be paid $1.3 million next season.
Offensive coordinator Joe Sloan and defensive coordinator Jay Bateman agreed to three-year deals when they were hired by Kentucky, according to term sheets obtained by the Herald-Leader through the state’s open records law. The annual salary for both coordinators will increase by $500,000 each year of the contract.
Should Sloan or Bateman leave UK for another coaching job prior to Dec. 1, 2026, they would owe the school $1 million. The buyout owed to UK if the coaches leave after that date is $300,000 per year left on the contract.
Last season, Kentucky paid defensive coordinator Brad White $1.6 million and offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan $1.35 million. The new deals represent raises for Sloan and Bateman from their last jobs. LSU paid Sloan $1 million last season, and Texas A&M paid Bateman $1.1 million, according to media reports.
UK released salary info for four other position coaches hired by Stein: outside linebackers coach Tony Washington ($575,000), wide receivers coach Joe Price ($500,000), offensive line coach Cutter Leftwich ($485,000) and safeties coach Josh Christian-Young ($450,000). Each of those coaches signed two-year contracts. Washington’s salary increases to $625,000 in year two of his deal. The other coaches’ salaries remain the same in the second year.
The position coaches would each owe UK $800,000 for leaving for another job prior to Dec. 1, 2026 and $300,000 per year left on the contract for leaving after that date.
Term sheets for running backs coach Kolby Smith and cornerbacks coach Allen Brown have not been finalized. The new staff is also retaining defensive line coach Anwar Stewart, whose current UK contract is set to expire in June.
All the new assistant coaches can earn up to $75,000 in incentives for the team reaching a bowl game, depending on its stature. Each can receive an additional $100,000 for winning a national championship and $25,000 for winning an SEC championship. The SEC championship bonus drops to $15,000 if the Wildcats lose in the conference championship game.
New UK general manager Pat Biondo will be paid $500,000 next season. That salary would have tied for 13th-highest among schools with a general manager last season, according to a USA Today database. UK paid Eddie Gran, who held a similar role on Mark Stoops’ staff, $475,000 last year.