5 Best-Compensated Gals's College or university Basketball Coaches

Women’s university basketball has found exponential growth in viewership, talent, and competitiveness over the past decade. With all the greater attractiveness and professional achievements of your Activity, particularly in NCAA Division I systems, coaching salaries have risen to mirror the value and leadership these major-tier coaches convey for their teams and universities. As universities carry on to invest of their Gals’s athletics departments, some standout coaches are reaping the fiscal rewards that include making powerhouse packages.

Right here’s a look at the 5 greatest-compensated Gals’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 Annual Income: $3.one million

Dawn Staley continues to generally be the gold common in women’s college or university basketball coaching. A former WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist, Staley has crafted South Carolina into a perennial powerhouse. Considering the fact that taking up This system in 2008, she has led the Gamecocks to several NCAA Remaining Four appearances and two nationwide championships (2017 and 2022).

In 2021, she made headlines by signing a historic 7-calendar year, $22.4 million agreement, earning her the very best-compensated Black head mentor in Females's college or university basketball background. That offer has since been restructured and extended with general performance incentives, placing her firmly at the highest of the record.

2. Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
Approximated Yearly Income: $two.nine million

A living legend, Geno Auriemma has guided the UConn Huskies to some jaw-dropping 11 nationwide titles. His tenure at UConn, which commenced in 1985, has reworked the program into Just about the most dominant dynasties in faculty basketball history—Males's or Girls’s.

Auriemma’s longevity and reliable performance have ensured profitable agreement renewals. His existing agreement includes a base salary, media obligations, apparel bargains, and hefty bonuses tied to NCAA Tournament runs. Whilst UConn has faced current problems 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: $two.seven million

Immediately after A prosperous two-10 years run at Baylor, exactly where she won 3 national titles, Kim Mulkey stunned the basketball environment by signing up for LSU in 2021. In just her 2nd year Along with the Tigers, she led them to the 2023 nationwide championship, bringing a whole new degree of pleasure and spotlight to Baton Rouge.

Her higher-profile arrival came that has a lucrative eight-12 months, $23.6 million deal, building her one among the highest-compensated Gals’s coaches ever. Noted for her passionate coaching fashion, flamboyant trend, and championship pedigree, Mulkey is central to LSU’s resurgence in Gals's hoops.

4. Brenda Frese – College of Maryland
Approximated Annual Income: $1.four million

Brenda Frese has quietly built a product of consistency at Maryland because M88 taking on in 2002. With several meeting championships, a national title in 2006, and dozens of NCAA Event appearances, Frese has stored the Terrapins in countrywide contention for more than twenty years.

Her prolonged-term effects and advancement of top-tier talent have built her indispensable to Maryland’s athletic Division. Her current offer includes bonuses for educational efficiency, wins, and postseason accomplishment—illustrating her dual commitment to athletics and university student enhancement.

five. Tara VanDerveer – Stanford College
Approximated Once-a-year Wage: $one.three million

Tara VanDerveer is not only amongst the best-paid coaches and also the winningest mentor in NCAA Ladies's basketball historical past. She surpassed Pat Summitt’s all-time get report and it has led Stanford to a few national titles (1990, 1992, and 2021) and diverse Ultimate 4 appearances.

Although VanDerveer hasn't been one to chase flashy contracts, Stanford has ensured that her legacy and contributions are correctly compensated. Her Management, improvement of WNBA stars, and dedication to excellence have solidified her spot Amongst the all-time greats in coaching record.

A Changing Landscape in Ladies's Basketball
The rising salaries of those coaches are reflective from the increasing level of popularity and financial viability of women’s school basketball. Applications are attracting additional nationwide TV deals, ticket revenue are growing, and company sponsors have become extra invested in Women of all ages's sporting activities.

The rise in coaching salaries is not simply an indication of progress—it’s a recognition of the effort, Management, and accomplishment these coaches carry to their packages and the Activity as a whole.

Honorable Mentions
Whilst these 5 coaches at this time direct the way with regards to earnings, many Some others are going up:

Kelly Graves (Oregon)

Vic Schaefer (Texas)

Jeff Walz (Louisville)

Courtney Banghart (North Carolina)

Just about every of such coaches has built important strides with their respective courses and will split into the top rated five in the approaching many years as Gals's basketball continues to mature.

Last Views
The days of underfunded Gals’s applications and underpaid coaches are steadily fading. These elite coaches don't just command higher salaries—In addition they mentor generations of athletes, shape the tradition of their universities, and elevate Ladies’s basketball to new heights. Because the sport proceeds to develop in attractiveness and help, we can easily anticipate these salaries—plus the profiles of such leaders—to carry on climbing.

Gals’s school basketball isn’t just preserving rate—it’s setting the tempo for the future of aggressive sporting activities.