So, I was reading about college basketball, and I stumbled upon something that really got me thinking—the head coach’s salary at Duke, specifically Coach K’s. I mean, we all know these coaches make a lot, but the numbers are still pretty wild when you see them.
I started digging into this because I was curious, you know? Like, how much does a top-tier college coach actually pull in? It’s not something they just put out there for everyone to see. Anyway, I found this report from Duke’s federal tax filings. It’s a bit of a slog to get through, but it’s got all the juicy details.
According to these filings, in the 2020-21 year, Duke paid Mike Krzyzewski—Coach K—over $12.5 million. Yeah, you read that right—$12.5 million. I had to read it twice to make sure I wasn’t seeing things. That’s a huge chunk of change for coaching a basketball team, even if it is one of the best teams in the country.
Here’s the breakdown of what I did:
- First, I looked up Duke’s tax filings online. It’s public info, but it’s not exactly easy to find or read.
- Then, I sifted through the documents to find the section on compensation for key employees.
- After that, I found Coach K’s name and saw the total compensation figure.
- Finally, I compared that number to other top coach salaries to see how it stacks up.
It turns out, this amount is up there with the most a college coach has ever been paid in a single year, when we’re not talking about buyout situations. It’s a lot, but it also makes sense when you think about the kind of revenue and attention a successful program like Duke’s brings in. Still, seeing the actual number was a bit of a shock.
I just wanted to share this because it’s not every day you get a look at this kind of financial stuff in college sports. It really puts into perspective the business side of these programs.
