Vince Marrow took a pay cut to go to Louisville

We have been told that money does not buy you happiness. In the world of college athletics, money talks. In the case of Vince Marrow, it’s not the dollars and cents that drew him away from Kentucky to Louisville.

The Courier Journal obtained Marrow’s contract terms via an open records request. This year, he will make $700,000 as the Cardinals’ “executive director of player personnel and recruiting.” It came with a $14,000 signing bonus. Marrow was scheduled to make $1.3 million this fall at Kentucky. That’s a nearly 50% decrease in pay from the University of Louisville. The contract terms:

2025: $700,000
2026: $800,000
2027: $900,000

As with every contract, Marrow is eligible to receive performance bonuses. If the Cards reach the CFP, he’ll get 10% of his base pay as a bonus.

Those incentives are featured in most contracts for college football coaches. Marrow has another unusual one. He “is entitled to receive additional compensation from private entities outside the University.” What exactly does that mean? JMI supplements the salaries of Kentucky coaches. It could be a similar deal. The way it was shared in media opportunities, Marrow can also supplement his income by fundraising for the program. Essentially, he could get a commission for bringing more money into the Cards’ NIL coffers.

UPDATE

Shortly after this story went live, John Brice from FootballScoop shared more details about Marrow’s contract with Louisville. Brice is the same reporter who broke the news that Bill Belichick was interested in Marrow earlier this spring.

“Marrow has additional components to his Louisville salary that guarantee him an additional $400,000 annually; in other words, his deal per sources is valued at $3.6 million across the three years,” writes Brice.

“Per sources, Marrow’s compensation is a multi-tiered structure at Louisville. He will receive 60 percent of his annual salary directly from the University of Louisville; ‘the remaining portion of Marrow’s compensation comes from a related entity.’”

This had to be awkward

Vince Marrow has tried to play nice with Kentucky fans, who frankly don’t give a damn. That sentiment is shared throughout the Joe Craft Football Training Facility. There is a time and a place to reconcile, but that is not now.

It surely made for some awkward conversations over the weekend. TreVaughn Paschal, Josh’s older brother, played for Kentucky during the transition between Joker and Stoops. He also served as a GA for a few years under Stoops before beginning his career as an agent.

This weekend, the elder Paschal got married in Lexington. There were plenty of familiar faces at the event: Avery Williamson, Bud Dupree, and Farrington Huegnin, among others. Vince Marrow was also in attendance. One can only hope that the former Cats were busting his chops whenever they saw him. To be a fly on the wall…

It also gave Vince an opportunity to share the following photo. “Friends for life.”

Great time last night with good friends Joe and ⁦@KellyCraftKY⁩. Friends for life. pic.twitter.com/VjTAAkNvVB

— CoachMarrow (@vincemarrow) June 29, 2025

More Kentucky News and Views on the KSR YouTube Channel

Kentucky Sports Radio has expanded its coverage of the Wildcats in the most ridiculous manner possible on our YouTube Channel. Here you will be able to find interviews with coaches and players, as well as commentary from the KSR crew. From Rapid Reactions following big events to our lengthy lineup of live shows, subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel to stay up to date on everything happening around the Big Blue Nation.