Louisiana State University fired their head football coach, Brian Kelly, following the team’s 49-25 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday. It was LSU’s third loss in four games, and that comes after being ranked as high as No. 3 in the polls earlier this season.

With Kelly’s departure, that brings the total to ten college head coaches who have been fired during this season. That also means there are a lot of universities who owe these coaches a substantial amount of money.

Although the exact amount of each individual buyout is subject to contractual details, these universities are still on the hook for huge amounts of money. This reflects the large financial stake universities are willing to make in major college football programs. There is a growing number of schools who are willing to pay significant sums to hire coaches, as well as to terminate their contracts early. In fact, according to CBS Sports, three of the five largest buyouts on record have occurred during the first few months of the 2025 season, highlighting the trend of escalating severance payments.

Kelly’s buyout is reported to be the largest this season, at around $54 million, however, the university said it is being negotiated.

Here is a list of other coaches who have been fired this season, and their reported buyouts (gathered from various online sources):

DeShaun Foster, UCLA: Fired early in the season after compiling a 5-10 record over two seasons, including a 0-3 start this season, $6.43 million.

Brent Pry, Virginia Tech: Fired following an 0-3 start; he finished with a 16-24 record over four seasons, $6.8 million.

Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State: Ended his 21-year tenure after a 1-2 start this season and a sharp decline from previous seasons; he leaves as the winningest coach in school history with a 170-90 record, $15 million.

Sam Pittman, Arkansas: Fired after a slow start, including a 56-13 loss to Notre Dame, finishing with a 32-34 overall record and 14-29 in the SEC, $9.8 million.

James Franklin, Penn State: Dismissed after a 3-3 start, which included three consecutive losses, dropping the team from preseason No. 2 to 0-3 in Big Ten play, $49.7 million.

Trent Bray, Oregon State: Fired seven games into a winless 2025 season (0-7), following struggles last year, About $4 million.

Billy Napier, Florida: Fired on October 19 after going 22-23 over three-plus seasons and earning a poor record against ranked teams and rivals, $21.2 million.

Jay Norvell, Colorado State: Fired after a 2-5 start; he finishes with a 18-26 record over four seasons, $1.5 million.

Trent Dilfer, UAB: Fired after starting 2-4 in 2025; he had a 9-21 record over three seasons, $2.4 million.

That brings the grand total to over $170 million in buyout money owed to these coaches. I can’t imagine the university regents and trustees are very happy about paying a failed coach for no longer working there.   Plus, most of these universities are state schools, so the taxpayers of those states may be a bit miffed about this development, as well.

Thus is the nature of big-time college football. When the team wins, there are great financial gains to be had, and when the team loses, it comes at a great cost.

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