Adam SparksKnoxville News Sentinel
Tennessee's Danny White is the highest-paid athletics director at a public university in the country, based on documents obtained by USA TODAY Network, after he signed a contract extension that pays him at least $2.75 million annually.
On Thursday, UT announced White's raise and contract extension, which went into effect Aug. 1.
It's a significant raise from his previous base salary of $2.425 million, and he’ll continue to receive the same 5% annual increase from his original contract.
White can also earn as much as $600,000 in bonuses annually if UT hits academic and athletic benchmarks, which it has routinely done during his tenure. His deal has a six-year rolling term, and among his perks is the use of a university plane for 10 one-way flights.
Consider this commission pay for the skyrocketing revenue that UT has generated under White’s watch.
The Tennessee Fund raised $139.7 million in 2023-24, the best year in UT athletics fundraising history. That mark has increased more than $100 million in the past four years since White was hired.
In 2023, UT athletics had its highest operating revenue in history at more than $200 million, exceeding the previous record by almost $50 million.
“When Danny says he and his team of exceptional athletics administrators and coaches are working to build the best athletics department in the country, those are not just empty words,” UT Chancellor Donde Plowman said in a university release.
"Danny is visionary — a leader in our conference and across the country — and is focused every day on creating the very best experiences for our student-athletes, our fans and our athletics department. That focus and commitment are yielding extraordinary results across all sports."
Tennessee hit record marks in fundraising, winning
White has taken the Vols from disarray to dominance in less than four years.
He was hired in January 2021 after AD Phillip Fulmer retired and football coach Jeremy Pruitt was fired for cause amid an NCAA investigation into alleged recruiting violations.
White hired Heupel, his coach at UCF, and that turned around the Vols football program.
In 2023-24, UT finished third in the Learfield Director’s Cup, the highest in school history, and captured its third straight SEC All-Sport title. It was one of two schools in a power conference to have every sport reach the NCAA postseason or a bowl game.
In March, UT men’s basketball made the Elite 8 for the second time in program history. In June, Vols baseball won its first national championship at the College World Series.
White’s coaches have been rewarded with raises and contract extensions, including Tony Vitello becoming the highest-paid college baseball coach in the nation. And now it is White’s turn.
How Danny White salary compares to highest-paid ADs
With maxed out bonuses, White could earn $3.35 million in the 2024-25 fiscal year.
That places him atop the lists of highest paid ADs at public universities, based on documents obtained by USA TODAY Network this summer.
Southern Cal’s Jennifer Cohen, Notre Dame’s Pete Bevacqua, Baylor’s Mack Rhoades and Miami’s Dan Radakovich likely earn around the same or more than White. But their current salaries are not available because they work at private universities.
A few public-school ADs are in the same ballpark as White.
Texas’ Chris Del Conte will earn $2.525 million in base salary in 2024-25 with bonuses that fall short of what White can receive. Del Conte’s deal is backloaded, increasing to $3.15 million in 2030.
By then, White’s pay will have risen multiple times because of his 5% annual increase. Plus, he’s received substantial raises each of the past two years as UT’s revenue has skyrocketed.
Pay of other notable public-school ADs, either base salary or average annual value, includes:
- Texas A&M’s Trev Albert – $2.35 million
- Penn State’s Pat Kraft – $2.26 million
- Texas Tech’s Kirby Hocutt – $2.24 million
- Oklahoma's Joe Castiglione – $2.2 million
- Ohio State’s Ross Bjork – $2 million
Danny White gets bonus pay if Tennessee does this
White’s base salary will climb to over $3.5 million by the 2029-30 fiscal year. With maxed-out bonuses, his total compensation would top $4 million that year.
White’s bonuses previously capped at $300,000 per year. If not for that threshold, he would’ve earned $533,610 in bonuses in 2023-24 after UT had a record-finish in the Learfield Director's Cup and the baseball team won the national championship.
So his new contract lifts that cap to $600,000 in bonuses. Here are White’s bonuses in his new deal:
- Up to 9% of base salary for Learfield Director’s Cup top 10 finish
- Up to 5% for Academic Progress Rate high score
- 4% for UT winning team national championship
- 2% for UT winning team SEC championship
- 1% for NCAA tournament appearance by men’s or women’s basketball; 3% for Sweet 16; 4% for Final Four
- 1% for bowl game; 3% for College Football Playoff appearance; 4% quarterfinal; 5% semifinal; 6% CFP title game.
USA TODAY's Steve Berkowitz contributed to this report. Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
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