Auburn football: Entire staff gets salary raises

Largest goes to Malzahn: 43%

By ANDY BITTER

abitter@ledger-enquirer.com

AUBURN, Ala. — A successful first season has Auburn’s coaches feeling a difference in their wallets.

Head coach Gene Chizik and all of his assistants recently received raises on the heels of an 8-5 season that included an Outback Bowl victory and a top-five recruiting class.

Offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn received the biggest bump, getting a 43 percent salary raise from $350,000 to $500,000 per year. Malzahn was rumored to be a candidate for several head coaching jobs this offseason, most recently Louisiana Tech. He declined to interview with the Bulldogs in January.

The deal puts Malzahn just ahead of LSU’s Gary Crowton as the best-paid offensive coordinator in the SEC.

Auburn’s other coaches received 10 percent raises, with Chizik’s annual compensation rising from $1.9 million to $2.1 million. He is the eighth-highest paid coach in the SEC.

Additionally, all of the contracts were extended by a year. Chizik’s remains five years, while Malzahn, defensive coordinator Ted Roof and wide receivers coach/associate head coach Trooper Taylor are still at three years. The other assistants have two-year contracts.

The other assistants’ salaries are as follows: Roof, $407,000; Taylor, $352,000; defensive line coach Tracy Rocker, $330,000; offensive line coach Jeff Grimes, $319,000; running backs coach Curtis Luper, $286,000; safeties coach Tommy Thigpen, $275,000; cornerbacks coach Phillip Lolley, $231,000; tight ends/special teams coordinator Jay Boulware, $231,000.

The staff’s total compensation for 2010 will be $5.031 million dollars.