Clemson's Swinney gets $1.1 million raise in new 6-year deal

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) Clemson coach Dabo Swinney received a $1.1 million raise for next season in his reworked contract with the school.

Swinney will make $4.55 million in 2016, an increase from the $3.45 million he was scheduled to make under his agreement from January 2014. The school's board of trustees approved the deal Tuesday.

Should Swinney decide to leave Clemson after this season, he would owe the school $6 million - an increase of $1 million over his previous agreement.

Swinney led the Tigers to an Atlantic Coast Conference title, a No. 1 ranking and a spot in the national championship game this past season where they fell to Alabama 45-40.

Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich said the school wanted to let the football coach know administrators believed in the success of the program.

''This new contract was important for us not only for what Dabo has accomplished in his eight seasons here but for what we know the program will continue to achieve, both on and off the field, for the foreseeable future,'' Radakovich said.

Swinney's compensation will go up by $250,000 in both 2017 and 2018. He'll get a raise of $200,000 in each of the final three seasons until he's making $5.65 million in 2021, the contract's final year.

At the national title game, Swinney was asked several times about his ties to his alma mater of Alabama, where he was part of the Crimson Tide's 1992 national championship team - and whether he'd be a natural successor whenever Alabama coach Nick Saban leaves.

The new contract makes that a bit more difficult.

Swinney's buyout would be $5 million in 2017, which is $2 million more than under the old agreement. The buyout decreases by $1 million each subsequent season.

Swinney would get a bonus of $600,000 if he's still with the Tigers on New Year's Day 2019. He'd receive another $400,000 if he's Clemson coach on New Year's Day 2021.

Swinney could also earn a total of $900,000 in incentives if the Tigers win the national championship. He'd make $400,000 each for making and winning the College Football Playoff semifinal and another $100,000 should the Tigers win it all.

Swinney was a little-known receivers coach in 2008 when he was tapped by then AD Terry Don Phillips as head coach after Tommy Bowden was fired in midseason.

He has gone 75-27 since then, including a 56-12 mark the past five years. Swinney won ACC titles in 2011 and 2015.

Clemson, with star Deshaun Watson back at quarterback, is favored for another ACC crown and a possible return to the playoffs.

''I'm excited and thankful for the opportunity to do what I love at such a great institution,'' Swinney said. ''We've built a solid foundation of success and will continue to work toward our goals of preparing young men for their future and being successful in everything we do.''