Of myriad reasons why Jimbo Fisher left Florida State for Texas A&M, this is at or near the top of the list.
Prior to FSU’s president confirming reports Friday that Fisher had accepted A&M’s job offer, it was reported overnight that the Aggies were prepared to offer him a 10-year contract worth in the neighborhood of $7.5 million annually. According to ESPN.com, that is indeed the case as Mark Schlabach has reported that the university’s regents have approved a $10-year, $75 million contract for Fisher.
Per Schlabach, it “is the richest deal in college football history in terms of total value.” It would also make Fisher the second-highest paid head coach in college football behind only former mentor Nick Saban of Alabama. Saban’s eight-year contract extension he signed in May of this year has a total value of $65 million that set the previous standard, and paid him $11.1 million this season alone.
Saban and Fisher, incidentally, will meet next season as A&M travels to ‘Bama in Tuscaloosa in Week 4.
Fisher, who had seven years and $40 million remaining on his FSU contract when he bolted Tallahassee, is expected to be officially introduced as the Aggies’ new head football coach at a Monday morning press conference in College Station.