OXFORD – Ole Miss men’s basketball coach Chris Beard will earn a base salary of $6
million in 2025-26, according to the term sheet obtained by the Daily Journal. The base salary will increase by $100,000 each year until the end of the six-year deal in 2031 ($6.5 million). The deal includes “supplemental compensation and licensing fees to be paid by the Ole Miss Athletics Foundation,” as state contracts in Mississippi can only be four years in duration on their own.
Per USA Today’s database, Beard will be the sixth-highest paid coach in the nation as of its March 13 update. Beard had a base salary of $5 million last season, per the database.
Beard and Ole Miss agreed to a new deal in early April after a reported pursuit by Texas A&M. This past season, Beard led the Rebels to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019 and to the program’s second-ever Sweet 16. He is 44-24 in two seasons at Ole Miss.
Beard’s new contract also includes a $400,000 retention bonus if he still with Ole Miss on May 1, 2026. The deal also includes a staff salary pool of $2.5 million per year.
If Beard’s contract is terminated without cause, Ole Miss will owe 75% of the remaining contract. Should Beard leave before the end of the contract in the first two years of the deal, he would owe $4.5 million. If Beard leaves in Year 3, he would owe $2.5 million and would owe $1 million should he leave in any of the final three years.
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