CHAMPAIGN — The nine Illinois assistant football coaches will be paid a combined $2.3 million for the 2012 season. The numbers were released by the school on Thursday afternoon.
The three coordinators — Billy Gonzales and Chris Beatty on offense, Tim Banks on defense — will be paid $400,000 annually.
Banks will make more than the previous Illinois defensive coordinator, Vic Koenning. For the 2011 season, Koenning earned $342,000. That was a bump of $17,000 from his 2010 salary.
Koenning, who was offered the defensive coordinator position at Illinois by new coach Tim Beckman, is now the defensive coordinator at North Carolina.
Former Illinois offensive coordinator Paul Petrino, who returned to Arkansas after the 2011 season, was paid $525,000 in his final year on Ron Zook's staff. He earned $475,000 in his first season.
Here are the Illinois salaries for 2012:
COACH POSITION SALARY
Billy Gonzales Co-offensive coordinator/receivers $400,000
Chris Beatty Co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks $400,000
Tim Banks Defensive coordinator/safeties $400,000
Luke Butkus Offensive line $200,000
Mike Ward Linebackers $200,000
Keith Gilmore Defensive line $200,000
Tim Salem Special teams coordinator/running backs $200,000
Alex Golesh Tight ends/specialists/recruiting coordinator $150,000
Steven Clinkscale Cornerbacks $150,000
It may surprise a few people ( I know it surprised me!) but, according to the University of Illinois Faculty Salary study for Fall 2011 (http://www.pb.uillinois.edu/Documents/FY12-Salary-Book.pdf) the average salary for a professor at the Champaign-Urbana campus is nearly $135,000 with a maximum of over $321,000! Maybe these football salaries aren't so out of whack!
Dano--at the high end, sure, some professors there make good money. Mostly folks in law and medicine and a few other departments -- not English, which is an essential skill for every UI student. But look at the rest. Especiallly look at how little the graduate teaching assistants make and they do the lion's share of the undergrad teaching.
Even at the high end, though, likely no senior UI English professor makes as much as the O line coach, who may even lack a gradfuate degree.
Just saying. Excuse me while I duck as some reactionary surrogate shows up to shout us down as traitors for daring to discuss anything in a civil fashion. They may yell that we have to move to Cuba since to have an intelligent give and take conversation here means we must be communists or believe that Obama is a Christian born in America.
rocko--more of that predictable conservative hate. You fellas are funny. I admit to a typo. Can you admit to being narrow minded?
So, you throw hate my way because I dare suggest that an English teacher does more for Illini students than a football team. Keep watching that Fox News and living in your bubble.
I certainly don't watch FOX news, but I do agree with what was said. People don't watch English students perform or their professors. I think these salaries are in line with what is the norm in college sports. I just hope that our defense is just as good or better for that kind of money.
If the football team wins, and they can keep the stadium full, these guys will be worth every penny and more. I've seen some comments comparing line coach salaries to English professors. Kind of like comparing plumbers to dentists. Both are skilled professionals, and they may even work in the some building sometimes, but not inter-changeable. Football coaches are in high turnover positions in a multi-billion dollar industry. The point being, if you want a good one you need to pay accordingly. The question is are these particular coaches worth the money, which has nothing at all to do with English professors, and will be answered soon enough on the football field. I doubt Illinois is even in the top 20 when it comes to football coaching compensation, but their willingness to spend a little money is a positive sign for the program going forward. Because it's easier to attract top tier coaching if you're willing to pay them top tier money then if you're trying to see what kind of bargain you can get.
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