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Josh Heupel earns additional bonus money with Tennessee ranked in top 10 of final polls

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey01/22/25

GrantRamey

Josh Heupel
USA Today Sports

Tennessee coach Josh Heupel earned another bonus Tuesday when the Vols finished in the top ten in both the Associated Press Top 25 and the Coaches Poll. Tennessee finished No. 9 in the final AP Top 25 of the season and No. 8 in the Coaches Poll.

Heupel earned an extra $100,000 in bonus money with the top-ten finish, giving him a total of $300,000 in bonus money this season. A finish in the top five the AP Top 25, Coaches Poll or College Football Playoff Poll is worth $150,000 in bonus money.

Per Heupel’s contract, he earned a $200,000 bonus for making the expanded College Football Playoff. A win in the first round at Ohio State would’ve been worth an additional $50,000.

The bonus for an appearance in the semifinals would have been worth $300,000. It would have been $400,000 if the Vols advanced all the way to the championship game and, had Tennessee won the College Football Playoff national championship game, Heupel would’ve received a $1 million bonus. 

Danny White, Josh Heupel and Tennessee football staff earned playoff bonus money

Heupel’s assistants also received bonus money for the playoff appearance. Assistants will receive a 12% bonus in their pay after making the postseason. That 12% is capped on a salary figure of $500,000. Any assistant making more than $500,000 annually will receive a bonus of $60,000 for reaching the College Football Playoff.

The bonus percentage would have gone up to 16% if the Vols made the semifinals, up to 18% for playing in the national championship game and 20% if Tennessee would have won the title. 

Tennessee Athletics Director Danny White got a 3% bonus for the Vols making the playoff. White’s total incentive compensation can’t exceed $600,000. He has maxed out his incentive compensation package every year he has been Tennessee’s director of athletics.

Vols started at No. 15 in both preseason polls

The Vols finished the season at 10-4 after a loss at Ohio State in the first round of the new 12-team College Football Playoff on December 21 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. The Buckeyes completed their four-game run to the national championship Monday night, beating Oregon in the Rose Bowl, Texas in the Cotton Bowl and Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff Championship Game Monday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. 

Tennessee started at No. 15 in both the preseason AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll. The Vols were ranked as high as No. 4 after a 4-0 start to the season, with wins over Chattanooga, North Carolina State, Kent State and at Oklahoma. 

They were ranked No. 6 in the Coaches Poll and No. 7 in the AP Top 25 after an 8-1 start to the season. The College Football Playoff Rankings had Tennessee ranked No. 7 and seeded ninth when the 12-team bracket was set on December 8.

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