It’s not Nick Saban money, but it’s not bad.
A couple of months after it was first reported, Mark Hudspeth confirmed to the Lafayette Advertiser that he and Louisiana-Lafayette have officially put the finishing touches on a new contract that will include both an extension and a raise. The new six-year deal means Hudspeth is signed with the Ragin’ Cajuns through the 2019 season.
Hudspeth made just a shade over $800,000; the new contract includes a raise in excess of $200,000 that will take his total annual pay to $1.075 million. Hudspeth’s salary for the 2014 season will be $950,000.
With Bobby Petrino ($855,000 total pay in 2013) leaving Western Kentucky for Louisville and Bryan Harsin ($724,000) ditching Arkansas State for Boise State, Hudspeth is now easily the highest-paid coach in the Sun Belt Conference. Next in line in SBC coach’s pay? Georgia State’s Trent Miles at $510,000, which means that Hudspeth, based on annual average pay, now makes more than double that of every other head coach in his conference.
Since coming to UL-L as an assistant at Mississippi State, Hudspeth has led the Ragin’ Cajuns to back-to-back-to-back 9-4 campaigns. Included in that total is three consecutive bowl wins; the 2011 New Orleans Bowl was the football program’s first-ever postseason appearance.