The Washington Huskies made a big investment when they hired Jedd Fisch away from the Arizona Wildcats after Kalen DeBoer left for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
On Wednesday, USA TODAY released its annual list of the highest-paid head coaches in college football, where Fisch’s $7,700,023 salary ranks No. 19 in the country. It also sits at No. 6 among Big Ten coaches behind USC’s Lincoln Riley, Ohio State’s Ryan Day, Penn State’s James Franklin, Oregon’s Dan Lanning, and Wisconsin’s Luke Fickell.
With DeBoer sitting at No. 7 on the list, making an even $10 million with the Crimson Tide, it may leave some fans wondering: is Fisch’s deal worth it?
The jury may still be out on the contract, which was agreed to by former athletic director Troy Dannen and left to Pat Chun. With Fisch sitting at 4-3, some fans believe it’s already time to move on from the head coach, which would be an extremely ill-advised idea since his contract carries a $40,239,960 buyout.
Even though that’s just part of college football, as a small number of fans at most schools will begin calling for a coach’s job after a few tough losses, that feels extremely premature aside from the financial reasons.
Fisch has also shown that he’s put an excellent coaching staff around him, and although his record may not reflect it yet, all the building blocks of a team that should be competitive in the Big Ten year in and year out are beginning to shine through.
He’s also put together the No. 18 recruiting class for the 2025 cycle, headlined by four-star prospects Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, Dylan Robinson, and Zac Stascausky. If Fisch can find a way to succeed in the red zone while continuing to recruit at a high level, he could prove to be well worth the contract.
For USA TODAY’s full list of the nation’s highest-paid coaches, click here.