College football coaching salaries and buyouts continue to soar, and a new federal proposal aims to bring greater accountability and balance to the system by putting a cap on salaries.
U.S. Representative Michael Baumgartner (R-Wash.) has introduced the Correcting Opportunity and Accountability in Collegiate Hiring (COACH) Act, legislation designed to limit how much schools can pay their athletic department employees. Under the bill, total compensation, including both annual salaries and buyouts, could not exceed 10 times the school’s undergraduate tuition and fees from the most recent academic year.
To protect schools from potential legal challenges, the COACH Act would also establish an antitrust “safe harbor”, allowing institutions to enforce these limits without fear of lawsuits. The measure, introduced on October 24 as H.R. 5812, has been referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce for consideration.
The timing of the bill’s introduction coincides with another costly wave of coaching changes across major programs. LSU recently parted ways with Brian Kelly, leaving the university responsible for more than $53 million in buyout obligations. Meanwhile, Penn State’s James Franklin is reportedly owed nearly $49 million, the second-largest buyout in college football history.
In total, schools are expected to pay out over $169 million in buyouts as the annual coaching carousel begins to spin once again. Supporters of the COACH Act argue that it’s time to bring fiscal responsibility to college athletics — and to ensure that education, not just coaching contracts, remains the financial priority.
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