Ladies’s school basketball has witnessed exponential advancement in viewership, expertise, and competitiveness in the last ten years. With all the enhanced level of popularity and professional achievements of your Activity, particularly in NCAA Division I packages, coaching salaries have risen to mirror the value and Management these top rated-tier coaches deliver to their teams and universities. As universities continue to speculate inside their Girls’s athletics departments, a number of standout coaches are reaping the fiscal rewards that include constructing powerhouse plans.
Right here’s a think about the five greatest-compensated Girls’s higher education basketball coaches as of 2025, showcasing not just their impressive salaries and also the achievements that justify their elite compensation.
one. Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
Believed Yearly Income: $3.one million
Dawn Staley carries on to become the gold conventional in Girls’s school basketball coaching. A previous WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has developed South Carolina right into a perennial powerhouse. Given that taking on the program in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to various NCAA Last 4 appearances and two national championships (2017 and 2022).
In 2021, she designed headlines by signing a historic 7-12 months, $22.four million contract, building her the highest-paid out Black head mentor in women's higher education basketball history. That deal has due to the fact been restructured and extended with general performance incentives, putting her firmly at the highest of the list.
2. Geno Auriemma – College of Connecticut
Believed Once-a-year Salary: $2.9 million
A residing legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to the jaw-dropping 11 national titles. His tenure at UConn, which began in 1985, has remodeled This system into One of the more dominant dynasties in university basketball heritage—Adult males's or Ladies’s.
Auriemma’s longevity and regular effectiveness have ensured lucrative contract renewals. His existing agreement includes a base salary, media obligations, apparel bargains, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Match runs. Although UConn has faced latest issues with injuries and roster turnover, Auriemma’s legacy and leadership preserve his worth substantial.
3. Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State University (LSU)
Believed Once-a-year Income: $2.7 million
Right after An effective two-decade run at Baylor, exactly where she received a few nationwide titles, Kim Mulkey shocked the basketball planet by joining LSU in 2021. In only her next year Together with the Tigers, she led them into a 2023 national championship, bringing a brand new level of excitement and Highlight to Baton Rouge.
Her significant-profile arrival came having a profitable eight-yr, $23.6 million agreement, producing her among the highest-paid out Women of all ages’s coaches at any time. Known for her passionate coaching style, flamboyant vogue, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Girls's hoops.
4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Estimated Once-a-year Wage: $one.4 million
Brenda Frese has quietly crafted a design of regularity at Maryland due to the fact taking over in 2002. With various convention championships, a countrywide title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Tournament appearances, Frese has saved the Terrapins in national rivalry for over 20 years.
Her long-expression influence and progress of best-tier expertise have created her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Office. Her existing offer consists of bonuses for educational performance, wins, and postseason accomplishment—illustrating her twin commitment to athletics and college student development.
5. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford University
Approximated Once-a-year Salary: $1.3 million
Tara VanDerveer is not simply one of the highest-paid out coaches and also the winningest mentor in NCAA Ladies's basketball historical past. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time gain record and has led Stanford to 3 national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and numerous Ultimate 4 appearances.
When VanDerveer hasn't been one 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 Amongst the all-time greats in coaching record.
A Changing Landscape in Ladies's Basketball
The escalating salaries of those coaches are reflective on the increasing level of popularity and financial viability of women’s school basketball. Plans are attracting a lot more national TV deals, ticket revenue are increasing, and company sponsors are getting to be additional invested M88 in Girls's sports activities.
The rise in coaching salaries is not merely an indication of progress—it’s a recognition from the effort, Management, and good results these coaches carry to their courses plus the sport in general.
Honorable Mentions
When these five coaches currently guide the best way with regards to earnings, several Many others are going up:
Kelly Graves (Oregon)
Vic Schaefer (Texas)
Jeff Walz (Louisville)
Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)
Each and every of such coaches has manufactured substantial strides with their respective courses and could crack to the top 5 in the approaching several years as Ladies's basketball proceeds to develop.
Ultimate Feelings
The days of underfunded Gals’s plans and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches don't just command large salaries—In addition they mentor generations of athletes, shape the lifestyle in their universities, and elevate Ladies’s basketball to new heights. Given that the sport carries on to improve in reputation and guidance, we are able to assume these salaries—and also the profiles of those leaders—to carry on soaring.
Females’s faculty basketball isn’t just maintaining tempo—it’s placing the rate for the way forward for competitive sports activities.