Shortly after we posted details of the new contracts for athletics director Stan Wilcox and Florida State’s nine assistant football coaches Friday afternoon, Warchant readers raised a number of questions on our Tribal Council message board about the merits of those new deals.
Many wanted to know why Stan Wilcox, who is finishing his third year as athletics director, received a raise of nearly $250,000 -- from $510,000 to $757,985.92 (don’t forget the 92 cents!). We already knew Wilcox had received an extension through July 2020, but this was the first time we learned of the salary increase.
Some eyebrows also were raised when the terms of defensive coordinator Charles Kelly’s new contract were disclosed. Kelly received a raise of $250,000, which pushes his salary to $833,000 this year. That will be bumped to $858,000 next year and then $883,000 the next. While those numbers represent a huge increase proportionally (a raise of more than 40 percent), we all realize FSU had to come through with some big bucks because Kelly was being courted by Auburn at the end of last season. So that wasn't nearly as surprising.
Finally, there were questions about the hierarchy of salaries for FSU’s assistant coaches. For example, why is it that offensive line coach Rick Trickett makes $150,000 more than popular recruiting coordinator Tim Brewster? And how come defensive tackles coach Odell Haggins earns slightly more than defensive ends/outside linebackers coach Brad Lawing?
With those topics inspiring lively debates on our Tribal Council, I figured we could take a closer look at each of them -- and also examine where these raises place Wilcox, Kelly and the rest of the football staff in comparison with other schools in the ACC and across the country.
TOPIC NO. 1 -- THE WILCOX RAISE
- OG
- PRO
- RB
- OG
- S
- OG
- TE
- OLB
- DT
- S
