Photo Courtesy of Mason Athletics
A look at and analysis of head coach Kim English’s newly released contract
BY DOMENIC ALLEGRA SPORTS EDITOR
On Thursday, April 1, Fourth Estate obtained head coach Kim English’s contract through a Freedom of Information Act Request. The details of English’s contract were unknown until they were received today.
According to the document, English is hired for a term of five seasons, effective March 23, 2021, through March 22, 2026. This is the same term that former coach Dave Paulsen was originally hired for back in 2015, according to his original contract.
Similar to almost every head coaching contract in college basketball, English’s contract is broken down into three main sources of income — base salary, supplemental compensation and bonuses.
English’s base salary comes in $50,000, higher than Paulsen’s original base — totaling at $450,000.
The first major deviation between the two contracts is the amount of supplemental compensation. Paulsen’s supplemental compensation was $300,000 for his original contract. English’s contract, on the other hand, comes in at a total of $475,000 — a difference of $175,000.
This brings English’s annual salary to a total of $925,000 compared to Paulsen’s $700,000.
The bonuses, also known as annual incentives, are the final part of English’s terms. This figure checks in at a maximum of $425,000 — $25,000 higher than Paulsen’s original contract.
English’s bonuses are made up of three main categories — retention, academic and competitive performance.
Retention bonuses total to a sum of $25,000 if English is still actively employed as the head coach on April 1 of each season, starting April 1, 2022.
Academic bonuses total a possible $50,000 for English. He can earn $25,000 for a team GPA of 3.0 or greater and another $25,000 if the team’s Academic Performance Rating is higher than 950.
Here is the breakdown of English’s competitive performance bonuses:
| Competitive Performance: | Amount: |
| 20+ win regular season | $10,000 |
| Regular Season Conference Championship | $15,000 |
| Tournament Conference Championship | $15,000 |
| NCAA Tournament Round of 68 | $50,000 |
| NCAA Tournament Second Round | $50,000 |
| NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 | $50,000 |
| NCAA Tournament Elite 8 | $50,000 |
| NCAA Tournament Final Four | $75,000 |
| NCAA Championship | $100,000 |
| A-10 Coach of the Year | $10,000 |
| National Coach of the Year | $25,000 |
There are a couple of bonuses from Paulsen’s original and amended contracts that are missing in English’s contract.
For instance, Paulsen received attendance bonuses and ranking-based bonuses. English does not receive either of those. The absence of ranking-based bonuses could be attributed to the NCAA’s decision to change to the NET ranking system from the RPI system, but the reason for the absence of attendance bonuses is unknown.
Another interesting aspect is that English does not receive any bonuses for postseason tournaments other than the NCAA tournament. Paulsen’s contract included a $10,000 bonus for an NIT appearance, a $25,000 bonus for a semi-final appearance and a $75,000 bonus for an NIT tournament win.
The last notable aspect of the contract is the buyout from the university. If the university wishes to buy out English in his first or second year, it would have to pay 100 percent of the base salary and supplemental compensation ($925,000). If it decides to buy him out before the end of his third year, it would pay 75 percent of the base salary and supplemental compensation ($693,750). Finally, if the university decides to buy out in the final two years, it would have to pay 50 percent of the base salary and supplemental compensation ($462,500).
Editor’s Note: This is a developing story. There will be an updated article if more information is released regarding Kim English’s contract if it is made available to Fourth Estate.
