The new contract extension for Cal women’s swimming & diving head coach Teri McKeever, which officially took effect on January 1st, 2020, will see her annual base salary rise to $242,500 through April 30th, 2024. That comes in addition to a number of potential performance bonuses (many of which are very high probabilities to happen).
In 2018, McKeever’s base salary was $200,978, in addition to $14,000 in “other pay” (usually bonuses). The Cal men’s swimming & diving team’s head coach Dave Durden had a base salary of $206,925 in 2018, which totalled to $260,675 when “other pay” was included.
By further comparison, in 2004, McKeever’s base pay was $77,970, meaning that her salary has more than tripled in the last decade-and-a-half.
During her career at Cal, which is now in its 28th season, McKeever has led Cal to 4 NCAA and 4 Pac-12 team championships. In 2019, they were the NCAA Championship runners-up, which was their 11th-consecutive top 3 finish. She was named the 2019 CSCAA National and Pac-12 Coach of the Year, and was inducted into the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame.
Among many international appointments, McKeever was the head coach of the 2012 U.S. Olympic women’s swimming team.
Maximum Performance Bonuses:
- Pac-12 Coach of the Year – $2,000
- National Coach of the Year – $3,000
- Coach is named to Olympic or World Championship Coaching Staff – $3,000
- Student-Athlete named to Olympic or World Championship team – $2,000
- Per Individual American or World Record Broken – $3,000
- Team Wins Pac-12 Championship – $4,000
- Per Individual or Relay NCAA Title – $2,000
- Team finishes in Top 4 at NCAA Championship – $13,000
- Team finishes in Top 2 at NCAA Championship – $12,000
- Team wins NCAA Championship – $10,000
McKeever’s Base Pay by Year:
- 2011 – $140,268
- 2012 – $140,268
- 2013 – $143,190
- 2014 – $158,609
- 2015 – $169,617
- 2016 – $173,704
- 2017 – $180,720
- 2018 – $200,978
It’s in the article.
Always wondered, does Terry have any children?
She doesn’t. In the book “Golden Girl” which is about Coughlin’s and McKeever’s relationship and success, McKeever basically admitted she couldn’t have children and coach at the elite level. However, she does have a dog (and a husband)
1/4 of a million dollars per year to coach a sport that brings in almost no revenue… One more nail in the coffin for college swimming… Downvote all you want, but it’s not going to help college swimming find a path to sustainability. This is especially true for an athletic department like Cal that takes millions of dollars per year from the general fund (tuition and fees) to cover their budget deficit. The people that believe this is a reasonable salary for a swim coach are the same people complaining about the escalating cost of a college education. For reference, the PAC12 only has 9 women’s programs and 6 men’s programs remaining. We need to stop the insanity and manage… Read more »
I you offered me $250k to coach the Cal team I would say, “No thank you.” It is not near enough money for the work and effort required. Especially with the cost of living there.
Don’t worry Todd, nobody is offering the Masters coach from the Coho Swim Club the Cal job 🤣🤣🤣
Very deserving!
Swimming sadly doesn’t generate any money. Programs operate well, well, well into the red
I knew this was a long shot, but I guess this dashes any of my hopes she returns to coach her Alma Mater USC.
The salary comparison I was expecting was to Meehan at Stanford. Same COL area, similar records, the two best women swim programs arguably, and a academicly challenging schools.
Good point. However, Stanford is a private university with a much larger endowment so they probably have more money to pay their coaches. Also, because Stanford is private their employees salaries might not be public the way salaries of employees at public universities are.
Very interesting that she doesn’t have a compensation provision tied to GPA, so no perverse incentive to dumb down swimmers’ majors.