Is Mack Brown Worth $5 Million?

With his recent raise, Mack Brown became the highest paid college sports coach in history. He now makes more than Bill Belichick! Mack makes more than any other college football coach and more than all but a handful of NFL coaches. And, this raise has received harsh criticism from the UT faculty council as being “excessive” during a time of financial hardship at the University and in the state of Texas. The University of Texas is a school and not an athletic program, right? Should Mack Brown be making 50 times what many professors make? I would argue that a great winning percentage is deserving of a good raise but not one this big. I would argue that winning a National Championship and going to another one in the past five years is worth something, but is it worth $5 million a year for the life of a contract? Is being a great recruiter and even better people manager really worth this kind of a payday during a national recession? To all of these, I would have to say “no.” However, there is one thing that makes Mack Brown worth $5 million a year: University of Texas Football revenues are at a national high of $73 million! That is a football program that brings in $73 million dollars every year. Now, that price tag comes because Mack is a great recruiter, who has won 3 Big 12 championships, at least 1 National Championship, and had 9+ wins every season this decade. Successful leaders are in high demand across many industries. During a time of recession when the state is looking for money, institutions are looking for money, our federal government is in great debt, and business are seeking bailouts, what is the market value for a leader who can transform an entity into the one with the largest revenue in its industry? Well, in college football, the price tag is about $5 million.