Oregon's Mark Helfrich receives five-year, $17.5 million contract extension

A month after coach Mark Helfrich led Oregon to the inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship game, the school rewarded him with a five-year, $17.5 million contract extension. His new contract goes through the 2019-20 season.

"Mark has provided tremendous leadership of our football program and the values and character that he insists upon are in line with our mission as an institution," Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens said in a statement. "The success of our student-athletes on the field and in the classroom will continue with Mark's leadership and we are thrilled that he will stay at home in Oregon for a long time to come."

In two seasons, Helfrich, who was an offensive coordinator under Chip Kelly before Kelly left for the NFL, has led the Ducks to a 24-4 record, a Heisman Trophy and nearly its first-ever national title.

Helfrich will earn $3.15 million during the first year of the extension, which is a significant increase from the guaranteed salary of $1.8 million he earned under the previous deal. However, Helfrich did earn more than $400,000 in incentives, including $100,000 for winning the Pac-12 and $150,000 for appearing in the national championship, this past season.

Should Helfrich decide to leave before the end of the 2016 season, he’ll owe the Ducks a $3 million buyout. That buyout drops to $2 million in Year 3 and $1 million in Year 4.

- - - - - - -

Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday

And don’t forget to keep up with all of Graham’s thoughts, witty comments and college football discussions on Facebook