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Fuente and Williams both make $500,000 in base salary, the amount by which their state benefits are calculated. Most of their income is designated as supplemental and augmented by performance and retention bonuses.
By 2019, Fuente will be guaranteed $3.5 million, Williams $3 million. This year they are assured $3.25 million and $2.7 million, respectively.
According to USA Today databases, Virginia Tech, Michigan, UCLA, Arizona, Michigan State, Kentucky, Louisville and West Virginia were the only schools that qualified for this season’s NCAA basketball tournament and paid their football coach and basketball coach at least $2.5 million each guaranteed.
Meanwhile, the newspaper ranked the Hokies’ $80.2 million in 2014-15 revenue 40th among Bowl Subdivision schools. Babcock thanked Tech president Timothy Sands and the Board of Visitors for believing in his vision.
“Even though they are very high salaries,” Babcock said, “hopefully in time it will be a pretty wise buy, so to speak. … It is a stretch of our budget, absolutely. ... (But) this is just where we choose to invest.”
Babcock's choice reflects two-fold confidence: in future ACC Network revenue and in Tech's ability to raise more money in private donations.
Williams’ pact extends six more seasons, Fuente’s seven, but as Babcock said, “you rarely see the end of a contract.”
Much like Williams’ deal, Fuente’s penalizes him significantly if he leaves Tech early in his tenure. He would owe the school $6 million if he departed before Dec. 15, the amount declining in subsequent years to $5 million, $3 million, $1 million, $750,000 and $500,000.
Williams’ deal began with a $7 million buyout in 2014. It’s now $900,000.
