Brad Brownell, Erik Bakich get big raises at Clemson. Here are the details

Clemson men’s basketball coach Brad Brownell and baseball coach Erik Bakich both led their teams to banner years in 2023-24. Now, they’re getting rewarded for it.

The Clemson board of trustees compensation committee unanimously approved on Thursday new contract extensions and raises for Brownell and Bakich after both coaches led their teams deep into the NCAA Tournament earlier this year.

Brownell, 55, who led Clemson basketball to only its second Elite Eight in program history and first in 44 years, received a five-year extension through April 2029 and a $500,000 boost in total salary for 2024-25 (from $3 million to $3.5 million).

Under Brownell’s new deal, his total salary will also automatically increase by $250,000 over the following four years, topping out at $4.5 million in 2028-29.

Bakich, 46, also earned a major salary boost after leading Clemson baseball to a second consecutive top eight national seed and its first NCAA super regional appearance since 2010 in his second season on campus.

Bakich received a two-year extension through June 2030 and saw his total salary jump from $950,000 to $1.275 million for 2024-25 (a top 10 salary among NCAA baseball coaches nationally, per Front Office Sports).

Bakich’s total compensation will then increase by $500,000 annually over the next five years of his revised deal and top out at $1.525 million in 2029-30. He’ll also receive a $200,000 retention bonus on Sept. 1, 2024, according to the contract.

Bakich — who’s considered one of the top young coaches in the sport and was mentioned as a candidate for the Texas job earlier this summer — gets another $200,000 retention bonus on Sept. 1, 2027, and Sept. 1, 2029 “if employed.”

Clemson athletic director Graham Neff, who hired Bakich away from Michigan two years ago after firing Monte Lee and chose to retain Brownell after he missed back-to-back NCAA Tournaments, played a key role in both negotiations and presented both for approval to the board’s compensation committee Thursday.

The committee also approved extensions and/or raises to other coaches, including 2023 national championship-winning men’s soccer coach Mike Noonan, women’s soccer coach Eddie Radwanski and various men’s basketball and baseball assistants.

Brownell, whose previous deal was set to expire in 2026, would be owed 50% of his remaining total compensation if he’s fired without cause over the first two years of his new deal (through 2025-26 season). That number drops to 37.5% of his remaining compensations for years 3-5 (2026-29).

Brownell’s 2024-25 total compensation ($3.5 million) should situate him somewhere in the No. 25-30 range for highest paid NCAA men’s basketball coaches after he ranked No. 46 on that list last season, according to USA Today Sports data.

Bakich, under his new deal, is owed 100% of his remaining total compensation if fired without cause over the first three years of his deal (through 2027) and 50% of his remaining compensation if he’s fired over years 4-6 of the contract (2028-30).

This is a developing story and will be updated.