Ohio State’s assistant coaches will make a total of $11.775 million in 2025, according to multiple reports.
According to multiple outlets who obtained copies of the contracts of Ohio State’s coaching staff — Buckeye Sports Bulletin sent out a public records request but has yet to hear back from the university — defensive coordinator Matt Patricia will be the Buckeye’s highest-paid assistant coach at $2.5 million. That mark is less than the reported $3.1 million Jim Knowles will make at Penn State, but $300,000 more than the amount Knowles made as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator last season.
Co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach Brian Hartline — who is tasked with calling plays this season following the departure of offensive coordinator Chip Kelly to the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders — received a $400,000 raise this season, going from $1.6 million to $2 million in the expanded role. Next on the payroll is co-defensive coordinator/secondary/cornerbacks coach Tim Walton, who is also receiving a $400,000 salary bump from $1.4 million to $1.8 million. His salary will increase to $1.9 million in 2027, as stipulated in his new three-year contract from the university.
Associate head coach and longtime defensive line coach Larry Johnson is Ohio State’s fourth highest-paid assistant at $1.4 million. He did not receive a salary increase from last season and is currently on a two-year contract that is set to expire in 2026.
Johnson is the final assistant to have a million-dollar salary, with the next highest-paid coaches being new offensive line coach Tyler Bowen and safeties coach/passing game coordinator Matt Guerrieri at $900,000. Bowen is making $100,000 less than former offensive coordinator Justin Frye, who left after the season to become offensive line coach for the Arizona Cardinals, while Guerrieri is receiving a $475,000 bonus in his new position. The two assistants will also have their salaries increase to $1 million in 2026 and $1.1 million in 2027, respectively, according to their three-year contracts.
Running backs coach Carlos Locklyn and co-offensive coordinator/tight ends coach Keenan Bailey will each make $650,000 in 2025. Locklyn is making the same amount this year as he did last, while Bailey earned a $250,000 salary bump. Linebackers coach James Laurinaitis is receiving a $150,000 salary increase to $500,000, while new quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler is the lowest-paid assistant at $475,000.
The assistant coaches’ combined salary of $11.775 million is $350,000 more than the amount Ohio State paid its coaches in base salary last year.
The assistant coaches will also have the opportunity to earn performance-based bonuses. They will receive an 8 percent bonus on their base salary if the Buckeyes make a Big Ten Championship Game for the first time since 2020, a 10 percent bonus if they make the College Football Playoff, a 12 percent bonus if they win the Big Ten Championship Game, a 20 percent bonus if they make the CFP quarterfinals, a 25 percent bonus if they make the CFP semifinals, a 30 percent bonus if they make the national championship game and a 35 percent bonus if they win the national championship for the second straight season.
