Ohio State assistants will make over $7.4 million

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — New Ohio State coach Ryan Day’s 10 assistant coaches will be paid a total of more than $7.4 million this year, according to contracts released by the university Monday.

Co-defensive coordinator Greg Mattison will be the highest paid with a $1.1 million base salary, more than double what he made as defensive line coach at Michigan last season. Al Washington, the linebackers coach Day also hired away from Michigan, got a bump from $375,000 to $500,000.

Quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator Mike Yurcich, offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson and co-defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley each will make $950,000, and defensive line coach Larry Johnson will earn $900,000.

The staff is rounded out by running backs coach Tony Alford ($800,000), offensive line coach Greg Studrawa ($600,000), special team/secondary coach Matt Barnes ($350,000) and receivers coach Brian Hartline ($345,000).

Johnson, Studrawa, Wilson, Alford and Hartline were retained from Urban Meyer’s staff last season.

All contracts include incentives for winning the Big Ten title and making it to the College Football Playoff, as well as a car allowance and football game tickets. The total base compensation for assistants is slightly more than that of last year, when the staff had a pair of million-dollar coaches. Defensive coordinator Greg Schiano made $1.5 million and Day — then the quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator — was paid $1 million.

Day has a five-year contract as head coach at $4.5 million annually. He was named in January as the successor to Meyer, who retired because of health reasons. Day was 3-0 as the Buckeyes‘ acting coach last season while Meyer served a suspension for mismanaging domestic-violence allegations against former assistant coach Zach Smith.