UK assistants Liam Coen, Brad White earn significant pay raises

Mark Stoops is ensuring that his staff gets paid appropriately. One of the caveats of the recent extension he signed with Kentucky to remain as the head football coach through 2028, was an increased pool of money for his 10 assistants. He didn’t have to wait long for that money to get used, either.

Both UK offensive coordinator Liam Coen and defensive coordinator Brad White earned significant pay raises in December for their impressive 2021 seasons. According to the University of Kentucky’s open records, Coen is set to make $1.1 million in 2022 while White will make $1.4 million. Both coaches also received extensions that will run through 2025 with yearly pay bumps of $100,000 during that time.

Coen earned $775,000 in 2021 while White made $900,000.

Liam Coen salary through 2025
2022: $1.1 million
2023: $1.2 million
2024: $1.3 million

Brad White salary through 2025
2022: $1.4 million
2023: $1.5 million
2024: $1.6 million

The deals for each coach actually came earlier in December, with Coen’s contract amended on Dec. 3 and White’s amended on Dec. 14. White’s contract has the possibility of a $300,000 bonus if he is to remain a UK assistant by the end of his current deal. He was nearly poached away by LSU a couple of weeks ago before Kentucky was able to convince him to stay.

Stoops’ new deal, which runs through June 2028 and will see him make anywhere from $6-7 million per year over that span, included an increased money pool of $6.5 million for assistants along with promises of a new practice facility. The added money for assistants wasn’t as talked about at the time when the news broke, but we’re quickly learning how important it was for Stoops to add that into his contract.

As a result, he was able to keep his offensive and defensive play-callers in the fold for at least one more season.