Biography & Early Wealth Journey

LSU is still finalizing Kelly's buyout, but as of now, the school owes its former coach a whopping $54 million.

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Kelly's contract calls for a buyout worth 90% of his remaining base salary and additional compensation, including a "longevity compensation" bonus that will be paid on July 15, 2026. Kelly was under contract through New Year's Eve in 2031, or the Tigers' final game of that season, whichever came last.

Primary Income Streams & Multi-Million Contracts

There's also a "duty to mitigate" clause in Kelly's contract. That means he has to look for other jobs; he can't just rest on his laurels and cash in. He's already 64 years old, but if he wants that buyout money, he can't quite retire just yet.

Under his deal, Kelly's base salary was only $400,000. However, he received the longevity compensation bonus every July 15 which was worth $500,000. And he got an additional $9 million in supplemental pay from January 1 of this year to December 31 of 2026. That supplemental pay would increase by $200,000 every two years.

The combination of pay made Kelly a top-ten highest-paid coach in college football. Because of that, his buyout is also one of the wealthiest the college game has ever seen (assuming he gets paid the full amount). Penn State's James Franklin got a $50 million buyout earlier this year. Texas A&M fired Jimbo Fisher in November 2023 and owes him $76 million, still the highest buyout for a college football coach.

Kelly is likely disheartened that he couldn't lead the Tigers to another national championship. Falling short in that goal is probably easier to stomach when you're being paid millions of dollars anyway.

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