Jim McElwain won 22 games in his two and a half seasons as Florida’s head coach. In the end, it’s going to cost the Gators about a million bucks a win.
Let’s do some rough math.
McElwain was hired in Dec. 2014 on a contract that paid an “average” of $3.5 million per year. He got an extension in 2016 to an “average” of $4.25 million, and then another that paid him an average of $4.5 million before the 2017 season. While his actual salaries probably weren’t that high, let’s just take those figures at face value because I’m not going to go back and add in all the incentives he won for two SEC East titles and the like.
So that brings us to $12.25 million.
But wait! McElwain had a $7 million buyout at Colorado State. The Gators and Rams worked out a deal that saw Florida pay $3 million in cash, pay another $2 million in the form of a guarantee game that has yet to be played, with McElwain himself covering the final $2 million.
Now we’re at $15.25 million in cash out of Florida’s pocket.
That brings us to today’s news.
UAA announces Jim McElwain will receive a buyout of $7.5 million, beginning with a $3.75 million payment Dec. 1.
— Edgar Thompson (@osgators) November 28, 2017
Add in $7.5 million to the $15.25 million and you get $22.25 million -- plus a $2 million game Florida will play next season -- or roughly one million dollars per win for a coach that didn’t beat anyone of significance at Florida.
McElwain himself still owes half of his personal buyout to Colorado State, but he can pay back his former employer with $1 million of his other former employer’s money and still have $2.75 million left for himself, with another $4.75 million coming.
What a life.