In Mississippi, there’s a law that prohibits public employees from having contracts exceeding four years. However, it has come to light that coaches Lane Kiffin and Jeff Lebby, who head the football programs at the state’s public SEC universities, and Chris Beard, the men’s basketball coach, have secured contracts that far exceed this limit. Beard’s contract, for example, extends to six years.

The extended contracts for Kiffin, Beard, and Lebby are made feasible through special agreements with private athletic foundations affiliated with Ole Miss and Mississippi State. This arrangement allows the coaches at both universities to bypass the four-year limit that applies to public employees in the state.

A Mississippi State representative stated, “Historically, this process has ensured our competitiveness in the hiring market.”

“As an institution competing at the pinnacle of college sports, it is crucial for our coaching contracts to align with market standards. This current approach has allowed us to effectively manage the contractual landscape in our field,” explained an Ole Miss representative to the Clarion Ledger.

The Clarion Ledger has secured contracts between the Ole Miss Athletic Foundation, known as The Bulldog Club at Mississippi State, and coaches and administrators from both universities. Previously, the universities and their foundations resisted releasing these documents, claiming they fell outside the state’s open records law requirements.

What Are Lane Kiffin’s Salary and Buyout Details?

Kiffin is tied to a contract that lasts until December 31, 2029, following a six-year extension he signed in 2022. This agreement included an automatic one-year extension on December 8, 2023. Starting in 2025, Kiffin’s annual base salary will be $9 million, while in 2024, he will earn $8.85 million, along with a $150,000 retention bonus if he remains the head coach on December 31, 2024.

The contract contains a clause that automatically extends it for another year as long as Ole Miss wins at least seven regular-season games. If the team fails to reach that number, the contract will be renewed unless either Kiffin or the foundation decides to waive the extension.

If Ole Miss terminates Kiffin without just cause, the foundation would owe him 80% of his remaining salary. For instance, if he were to be dismissed on November 30 at the end of the regular season, he would be entitled to approximately $36,590,000. Should the automatic contract extension take effect by December 8, that total climbs to nearly $44 million.

If Kiffin chooses to leave before the end of the 2024 calendar year, he must pay a buyout of $4 million, which decreases to $3 million in 2025, $2 million in 2026, and remains at $1.5 million from 2027 onwards.

His buyout agreement stipulates that he has no obligation to mitigate damages, meaning any income he earns post-departure will not reduce the amount owed to him by the foundation.

Under Kiffin’s guidance, Ole Miss achieved an unprecedented 11 wins last season, culminating in a victory at the Peach Bowl against Penn State. This marked Kiffin’s second time leading the team to a double-digit win season since he commenced his tenure in 2020.

He maintains a 34-15 overall record with Ole Miss, and the Rebels are currently ranked sixth in the nation as they gear up for the 2024 season.

What Are Chris Beard’s Salary and Buyout Details?

Chris Beard’s recent contracts signed in April reflect nearly a 50% salary increase as he starts his second season with Ole Miss.

Beard’s initial agreement set his salary at $3.35 million for the 2024-25 season, but now it has been raised to $5 million, according to the contracts obtained by the Clarion Ledger from the Ole Miss Athletic Foundation. His base salary will rise by $100,000 every year throughout the six-year duration of the deal.

Last season, Ole Miss concluded its campaign with a 20-12 record and a 7-11 mark in the SEC, missing out on both the men’s tournament and NIT. Despite a perfect non-conference season, nine losses in the last 11 games dashed their hopes for March Madness.

Reports suggested Beard was considering leaving Ole Miss during the offseason, with discussions linking him to the Arkansas coaching vacancy that was eventually filled by John Calipari. Ole Miss announced Beard’s contract extension on March 13, just before their participation in the SEC tournament. He finalized his latest contract with the Ole Miss Athletic Foundation on April 12, shortly after publicly stating his intention to remain with the Rebels amid interest from Arkansas. The financial aspects of that agreement were not disclosed.

For 2024-25, $1 million of Beard’s salary will come from a “licensing and publicity rights agreement” between the foundation and Baseline Asset Management Corporation, where Beard serves as president.

This new contract brings Beard’s total pay to a level equivalent to what he earned at Texas, where he had a seven-year contract worth $5 million annually before being dismissed due to a domestic violence charge, which was later dropped.

Currently, Beard’s total compensation of $5 million ranks him fourth in the SEC, following Tennessee’s Rick Barnes, Auburn’s Bruce Pearl, and Calipari. His pay matches that of Kentucky’s Mark Pope and Alabama’s Nate Oats.

If Beard is terminated without cause, the foundation would owe him 75% of the value remaining in his contracts. For example, if fired on March 31, 2025, he would receive $19,875,000. If he departed within the first year of his contract, the buyout would be $4.5 million, dropping to $3.5 million in the second year, and $2.5 million in the third year, then stabilizing at $1 million thereafter.

For the last three years of Beard’s contract, his buyout amount will be reduced by half if Athletic Director Keith Carter and University Chancellor Glenn Boyce are no longer in their roles.

What are the salary and buyout details for Jeff Lebby?

According to records obtained by the Clarion Ledger, Lebby’s contract spans five years and does not feature an automatic extension clause as Kiffin’s does.

Lebby has been brought on by the Bulldogs to succeed the dismissed Zach Arnett after the 2023 season and is gearing up for his inaugural season as head coach. Known for his strong offensive strategies, Lebby has spent the past five years managing offenses at Central Florida, Ole Miss, and, most recently, Oklahoma.

From Lebby’s total compensation, $800,000 is sourced from his state contract. The remaining $3.45 million of his base salary is covered under his Bulldog Club agreement, leading to a total of $4.25 million in his first year.

If Mississippi State were to dismiss Lebby without cause, both the Bulldog Club and the university would owe him 75% of the remaining funds on their contracts, resulting in a buyout of approximately $14.3 million as of November 30. Unlike Kiffin, Lebby is obligated to seek alternative employment.

If Lebby decides to leave on January 31, 2025, he would be responsible for paying the Bulldog Club $5 million and the university $1.2 million. The Bulldog Club buyout decreases by $1 million for each year left on his contract, but if he takes a position at another SEC school, the Bulldog Club buyout would increase by $1.5 million.