Lance Leipold is under contract at Kansas through April 30, 2030, on a deal that pays him $6.3 million in base and supplemental salary for the May 2026 to April 2027 contract year, plus a $500,000 retention bonus each year. Kansas reworked his deal after he turned down Washington in January 2024, and it includes an unusual clause requiring his pay to stay in the top half of the Big 12, reviewed in April 2026.
| 2026 to 2027 pay | $5.8 million in supplemental pay plus a $500,000 base, about $6.3 million, rising to $6.75 million by 2029 |
| Retention bonus | $500,000 for each year he remains head coach |
| Big 12 clause | If his pay falls outside the top half of the Big 12, Kansas must raise it. The parties were set to review it in April 2026 |
| If he leaves | $3 million from May 1, 2026, then $2 million and $1 million |
| Perks | Up to $20,000 a month in private aircraft use |
Contract terms are from the amended contract Kansas released, as reported by The Kansas City Star, KSN and FootballScoop. Any change from the April 2026 review had not been made public in the sources reviewed. The full national list is on our college football coaching salaries page.
How His Pay Climbed
Leipold arrived from Buffalo in 2021 on a six year, $16.5 million deal paying $2.2 million. After Kansas reached its first bowl in 14 years, he got $5 million a year in November 2022, and after a 9 and 4 season and his decision to stay rather than take the Washington job, Kansas reworked it again. He has roughly tripled his pay in Lawrence.
The Bottom Line
Lance Leipold makes about $6.3 million in salary plus a $500,000 retention bonus at Kansas this contract year, on a deal through April 2030 that guarantees him top half Big 12 pay, with a $3 million cost to leave. Follow the Jayhawks on the Kansas football schedule and Kansas score today.