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Why Clemson football's Garrett Riley is nation's highest-paid assistant — for now
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- Why Clemson football's Garrett Riley is nation's highest-paid assistant — for now
Clemson offensive coordinator Garrett Riley is the highest-paid assistant coach in college football this season at $2.05 million, according to the USA TODAY Network database of college football assistant coaches salaries released Thursday.
Riley, who was hired by coach Dabo Swinney on Jan. 13, is No. 1 by virtue of a one-time signing bonus of $300,000. That ranks him just ahead of Washington offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who will make $2,000,004 this season.
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Collectively, Clemson's staff of 10 full-time assistants, will make $7,775,000 this year, which ranks No. 9 in FBS in total compensation for assistants and No. 1 among ACC programs.
Ohio State, which has five assistants making $1 million or more and has a total payout of $9.3 million, is No. 1, just ahead of Georgia at $9.2 million.
Other schools ahead of Clemson are Alabama , LSU , Texas , Texas A&M , Kentucky and Michigan State.
Wes Goodwin , who is in his second full season as Clemson's defensive coordinator, is the Tigers' next highest-paid assistant after Riley at $850,000. That ranks him at No. 100 on the USA TODAY list.
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At South Carolina , assistant coaches will be paid a total of $6,185,000 this season, with defensive coordinator Clayton White and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains leading the way at $1.2 million and $1 million, respectively.
The number of assistant coaches in the country making $1.5 million or more has increased from none 10 years ago to 18 in 2023. Even more astounding is that in 2014 only five assistants made $1 million or more; in 2023 that number has risen to 66.
At Clemson, Goodwin is followed by Nick Eason (defensive tackles), Mike Reed (cornerbacks) and Mickey Conn (safeties), each of whom will make $800,000 this season.
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Defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall is next at $625,000, followed by tight ends coach Kyle Richardson at $500,000. Thomas Austin (offensive line), C.J. Spiller (running backs) and Tyler Grisham (wide receivers) each will make $450,000 this season.
These numbers reflect what coaches are making this season and do not necessarily show the amount a coach is making annually or per year. Some coaches have multi-year contracts that include pre-scheduled pay increases for future years.
Scott Keepfer covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at skeepfer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @ScottKeepfer
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Why Clemson's Garrett Riley is FBS' highest-paid assistant — for now
