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Dawn Staley Is Paid More Than 10 Prominent Men's CBB Coaches

Originally posted on The Spun | By Andrew Holleran | Last updated Apr 12, 2026 9:49 AM ET

Dawn Staley is the best coach in women's college basketball. She's also the highest paid.

The South Carolina head coach, who is fresh off a public spat with UConn legend Geno Auriemma, suffered a loss in the national title game to UCLA last weekend. Staley and the Gamecocks were going for another national championship. They fell short, failing to get Staley her fourth championship.

"Although we didn’t win, I can swallow it because we lost to a really good human being and a good team that represents women’s basketball well," she said postgame.

Apr 4, 2026; Phoenix, AZ, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley speaks to the media during a press conference at the Final Four National Championship Practice at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images© Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Staley will look to continue to raise the profile of the women's game. While doing so, she'll be very highly paid.

The South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball coach makes $4.25 million in salary. That number will increase to $4.5 million next season.

Staley is paid more than several major men's college basketball coaches

Staley's $4.25 million salary for 2025-26 is higher than several top coaches in the men's game, including these 10:

Marquette's Shaka Smart - $4 million
Oregon's Dana Altman - $4 million
Wisconsin's Greg Gard - $3.8 million
Northwestern's Chris Collins - $3.8 million
Michigan's Dusty May - $3.7 million
Iowa's Ben McCollum - $3.3 million
Virginia's Ryan Odom - $3.2 million
Gonzaga's Mark Few - $3 million
Ohio State's Jake Diebler - $2.5 million
Notre Dame's Micah Shrewsberry - $3.2 million

Some of these men are about to get big-time raises - especially in the cases of Michigan's Dusty May and Iowa's Ben McCollum - but it's a good sign for the women's game that someone like Dawn Staley is paid more than several top coaches on the men's side.

She deserves it, given how successful she is.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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