University of Kansas men's head basketball coach Bill Self has committed to the Jayhawks for life, signing a contract that makes him the highest-paid coach in NCAA history.
Self signed a lifetime contract Tuesday that will pay him $53 million over just the first five years. That puts him ahead of Kentucky head coach John Calipari for the richest deal ever for a college basketball coach at a public university.
The deal restructures a contract Self signed in 2021. He will now make more than $11 million this season and at the end of each year, another year is added on to the contract.
It's a deal that Kansas athletic director Travis Goff said is "long overdue."
"Bill Self is undoubtedly the most consistent coach in college basketball, and a restructuring of his contract terms were long overdue," he said in a statement. "In an ever-changing collegiate athletics environment, our strong commitment to Coach Self positions KU basketball to maintain and enhance its status as the most storied program in the country."
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Self's tenure at Kansas has been one of the most dominant in college basketball history. In 20 seasons with the university, he has guided the Jayhawks to two national championships and a record 13-straight regular season conference titles, and he is one of just nine coaches with 700-plus career wins. He's also helped produce 18 first-round NBA draft picks. And he still isn't done.
“I know the Chancellor and Travis are as excited as I am about the future of Kansas Basketball," Self said. "There has never been a better time to be a part of our athletic department and this program. My family and I are so proud to be at this university, and I am looking forward to many more seasons representing the most passionate fan base in the country. There’s no place like Kansas."
Self was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017 and cemented himself as one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time.
