Chris Klieman and K-State coaching staff will top $500,000 in bonus money this season
Kansas State football coach Chris Klieman and his 10 assistants won’t have to worry about Christmas bonuses this year.
All of them are set to receive bonus checks coming off an 8-4 regular season in which the Wildcats exceeded expectations by finishing tied for third in the Big 12 standings and earning a spot in the Liberty Bowl.
K-State’s coaching staff has already earned a combined $516,640 in bonus money, and it has the potential to earn more. They can make another $100,000 with a good showing against Navy on Dec. 31 in Memphis, Tennessee.
Bowl games mean gifts for players and bonuses for coaches.
Klieman is set to earn the most bonus cash. K-State’s first-year coach has already triggered two bonuses outlined in his contract. On top of his $2.3 million salary, he will get an extra $50,000 for guiding the Wildcats to a bowl game and another $50,000 for finishing third in the conference standings.
He can earn an additional $25,000 if K-State ends the season ranked in the top 25, which the Wildcats can likely achieve by beating No. 21 Navy at the Liberty Bowl.
K-State assistant coaches are set to earn between $21,000 and $66,000 in bonus money, depending on their salaries. Each K-State assistant will receive a bonus that equals 12% of their yearly pay for helping the Wildcats win eight games this season.
Offensive coordinator Courtney Messingham ($60,000) and defensive coordinator Scottie Hazelton ($66,000) will receive the most bonus cash of the assistants, as their salaries both meet or exceed $500,000.
Every K-State assistant coach can collect an extra $7,500 if the Wildcats finish in the final top 25.
K-State coaches all qualified for a bonus the moment the team became bowl eligible with a victory over the Kansas Jayhawks on Nov. 2. They could have earned more bonus money by winning nine regular season games or claiming the Big 12 championship.
The highest performance-based incentive outlined in K-State’s coaching contracts is for winning a national championship, which would translate to a 32% bump in salary for every assistant and a $350,000 bonus for Klieman.
Bonus breakdown
Buddy Wyatt (defensive ends): $21,000.
Mike Tuiasosopo (defensive tackles): $32,640.
Brian Anderson (running backs): $36,000.
Jason Ray (receivers): $36,000.
Van Malone (cornerbacks): $36,000.
Collin Klein (quarterbacks): $39,000.
Joe Klanderman (safeties): $42,000.
Conor Riley (offensive line): $48,000.
Courtney Messingham (offensive coordinator): $60,000.
Scottie Hazelton (defensive coordinator): $66,000.
Chris Klieman (head coach): $100,000.