UW Extends Kalen DeBoer's Contract Through 2028
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Almost exactly a year go, Kalen DeBoer was hired as the University of Washington football coach and remarked at the time that he viewed this as a long-term job.
The UW agrees with that.
On Tuesday, the athletic department announced that DeBoer — after leading the Huskies to a 9-2 season entering the Apple Cup against Washington State — has agreed to a contract extension that runs through the 2028 season, one that will pay him $4.2 million beginning next year and give him a $1 million raise.
"My family and I have loved every minute of being here at this amazing institution in this world-class city," DeBoer said in a statement. "We talk all the time about how it's the people who set a place apart and Husky Nation is filled with some of the best we have ever encountered. We are incredibly grateful for the support we have received and are excited to continue to build on the amazing tradition of success."
On Nov. 30 of last year, DeBoer became the UW's 30th head coach in program history, taking over after Jimmy Lake was fired during the season and the Huskies finished 4-8.
The former Fresno State coach immediately turned things around largely using inherited players but also adding some key transfers such as quarterback Michael Penix Jr.
The DeBoer-led Huskies made a huge program statement by beating then-sixth-ranked Oregon 37-34 in Eugene 10 days ago and now have a five-game winning streak and the promise of fairly attractive bowl game as they head for a regular-season-ending game in the Palouse on Saturday night.
Sharing details of his extension, the UW will increase DeBoer's salary by $100,000 each year after the initial bump. He also will receive a $500,000 retention bonus each time if he remains the head coach on March 15, 2024, and March 15, 2026, and a $1 million bonus if he's still the Husky head coach on March 15, 2028.
"It is clear that Kalen is such an amazing fit at the University of Washington," UW athletic director Jen Cohen in a statement. "He has come in and made an incredible impact in every aspect of the program, our department, the University and the Seattle community. Kalen is an elite competitor who approaches each and every situation with the utmost class and integrity."
With his nine wins and possibly up to two or three more, DeBoer has become the winningest first-year Husky football coach in the program's 133-year history. The previous best debut season was Chris Petersen's 8-6 record in 2014.
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