Under Troy Calhoun, the Air Force Falcons have been a consistent force in the Mountain West, and his salary and contract have increased in line with that success. While he might not be the highest-paid coach in college football, what salary will Calhoun earn in 2023, what does his contract look like, and what is the net worth of the Air Force head coach?

Troy Calhoun’s Salary and Contract in 2023

Let’s start with the easy part. Calhoun’s current contract runs through the 2025 college football season following a five-year extension signed in 2020. At the time of the extension, the Air Force head coach still had time on his current deal, which was set to expire after the 2022 college football season.

So, why did the Falcons extend Calhoun’s contract when they did? There were a multitude of factors, not least of which was success on the field. In 2019, Calhoun’s Air Force team went 11-2, earning a berth in the Cheez-It Bowl where the Falcons comfortably beat Washington State of the Pac-12 Conference.

“It is important that we keep the continuity,” Athletic Director Nathan Pine told The Gazette at the time of the extension. “We have leadership here that will continue to drive our program in a successful direction. The season that we’re coming off of is pretty impressive.”

That on-field success also put Calhoun in demand. With Mel Tucker’s departure from Colorado, it is understood that the Air Force head coach was a prime candidate to be the boss in Boulder before the Buffaloes announced the acquisition of Karl Dorrell. Calhoun’s name was again mentioned before Deion Sanders took the helm following the end of Dorrell’s reign in 2022.

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So, we know that Calhoun has a contract that will last him through 2025. He has received multiple extensions since taking the helm in 2007, and with a 199-121 record entering the 2023 college football season that includes three double-digit campaigns in the last four seasons, it wouldn’t be out of the question to see him receive another extension sooner than later.

What isn’t immediately clear, however, is what Calhoun commands as a salary at Air Force. The finances for the military academy athletic department are taken care of by a non-profit called the Air Force Academy Athletic Corp. As a result, Calhoun’s salary — and that of his staff — remain private. The full terms of his contract are also private.

The last time that Calhoun’s salary was disclosed to the public was as a result of a July 2013 contract extension. At that time, Calhoun earned a base salary of $825,000. However, like other head coach contracts, this will have likely been buoyed by bonuses and other supplemental salary elements.

Furthermore, as head coach salaries escalate further, it’s unlikely that Calhoun’s salary has been left behind. In fact, upon the extension of his contract in 2020, Air Force Athletic Director Pine stated that he felt “very good about where we are amongst our peers” when talking about Calhoun’s salary.

Calhoun’s Net Worth

So, what does that tell us about Calhoun’s potential 2023 salary and overall net worth? Well, Wyoming head coach Craig Bohl — one of the longest-tenured coaches in the Mountain West — will earn a guaranteed $1.7 million in 2023 before bonuses and supplemental salary. That also doesn’t include associated perks.

Similarly, Jay Norvell will earn a $1.7 million salary in 2023, with that figure increasing by $100,000 for each year of his current deal. That contract made him the highest-paid coach in the Mountain West at the end of 2021. Mountain West champion head coach Jeff Tedford of Fresno State earned $1.5 million in 2022.

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It isn’t out of the question that Calhoun’s salary falls within a close radius of that earned by Bohl, Norvell, and Tedford. Some reports suggest that after bonuses, Calhoun might earn up to $3 million in 2023, but a figure closer to $1.7 million feels like a more likely amount.

Given the five-year contract signed in 2020, with a presumed average of $1.7 million, that would make Calhoun’s current net worth $8.5 million. However, his actual worth to Air Force remains priceless, given the level of success that the former Falcon has brought to the program during his tenure.