Cal Football Coaches Taking Pay Cuts Amid Financial Pressures of Virus

Cal football coaches will take temporary salary cuts, according to a Sunday story by the San Francisco Chronicle that was subsequently confirmed by Cal Sports Report.

Details on the amount of the cuts have not been determined, but the Golden Bears coaches join a trend of Pac-12 football and basketball coaches taking pay cuts as the COVID-19 pandemic robs schools of revenue-producing sports.

The football and basketball coaches of at least eight other Pac-12 schools have taken pay cuts, according to a July 17 ESPN.com report, which noted that both coaches at Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, USC, Washington and Washington State have agreed to reduced salaries, at least temporarily.

Cal head football coach Justin Wilcox was scheduled to earn $3,050,000 (includes $400,000 retention bonus) in 2020, according to a Cal Sports Report story on his five-year contract.

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Sott and other conference officials have also taken pay cuts.

The Chronicle story also noted the significant financial impact the pandemic and the canceling of fall football has had on the Cal athletic department, putting the financial hit at $50 million. Athletic director Jim Knowlton admitted some “personnel actions” must be taken.

Here is an excerpt:

The financial impact of a fall without football is immense. The Pac-12’s television contracts are worth approximately $250 million annually, or more than $20 million per school. Each school reaps about $32 million to $33 million overall in conference-generated revenue, including money from the Rose Bowl, the College Football Playoff and the NCAA basketball tournament (which was canceled in March).

Toss in revenue produced by the schools — ticket sales, concessions and the like — and Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton estimated a potential $50 million hit to his department’s budget for the coming fiscal year. Stanford athletic director Bernard Muir said his university’s loss projections were comparable. Whatever savings the schools reap from not traveling to or hosting games, approximately $10 million at Cal and $6.5 million at Stanford, doesn’t begin to balance the ledger.

Asked about possible layoffs and furloughs because of football’s postponement, Knowlton said, “Yeah, I think we’ve developed a lot of different models to get to a potential $50 million shortfall. There certainly will be some personnel actions we’ll have to take.”

One action: Cal football coaches agreed to take temporary salary cuts, according to a source close to the program.

The Chronicle report stated that the financial impact of the pandemic on Cal as a whole was estimated at $340 million, and that the school is still facing a $65 million deficit after borrowing and personnel cuts.

And the report provided a final note on the Cal athletic department’s financial concerns.

Cal’s athletic department already faces an annual debt payment of nearly $9 million, resulting from Memorial Stadium upgrades and construction of an adjacent training facility.

Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

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