Oct 23, 2021; Ames, Iowa, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy watches the team warm up before the game against the Iowa State Cyclones at Jack Trice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports ORG XMIT: IMAGN-452669 ORIG FILE ID: 20211110_ter_bc7_901.jpg

Editor's note: This story was originally published in August 2025 and has been updated.

Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy ended the 2024 season with the No. 17 largest salary in college football at $7.75 million, according to USA TODAY’s review of available records at that time. The Cowboys fired Gundy, ESPN's Pete Thamel reported and Oklahoma State later announced, following a Week 4 loss to Tulsa, which dropped them to 1-2 on the season,

USA TODAY will report on the latest data in October 2025.

View the entire 2024 college football coach salary database here

How much does Oklahoma State pay Mike Gundy?

Oklahoma State was slated to pay a base of $7.75 million to Mike Gundy last year, but that number could have changed significantly based on certain incentives throughout the year. School Pay includes $1 million retention payment Gundy would receive only if he remained head coach on Dec. 15, 2024. School Pay also includes $1 million annual life insurance premium payment, with a school-affiliated entity entitled to reimbursement from the policy's Death benefits.

How much is Mike Gundy's buyout at Oklahoma State?

As of December 1, 2024, Mike Gundy's buyout was $25.36 million, which ranked as the No. 27 most-expensive in USA TODAY's available data. But that changed with Gundy's latest contract. More via The Oklahoman:

Gundy signed a new contract last December that reduced his annual salary by $1 million and removed the rollover provision of his previous agreement. The new contract runs through Dec. 31, 2028, paying him $6.875 million for the 2025 season, with an annual raise of $125,000 each year.

If he is terminated without cause on or before Dec. 31, 2027, the buyout he is owed is $15 million. If he is terminated without cause after Dec. 31, 2027, the buyout is $10 million.

How much can Mike Gundy earn in bonuses?

The most the Oklahoma State coach could earn in bonuses during the 2024 season was $1 million.

This story was updated with additional information.

The information above applies to the data obtained for the 2024 contract season: To see the methodology behind this data, click here.

"Buyout Owed" figures are the amount a school would owe coach if it fired him without cause on Dec. 1, 2024. Many of these amounts are expressly subject to coach's duty to make good-faith efforts to find another job, with income from that employment offsetting the amount owed. If mitigation and offset are not addressed in contract, coach still may have obligation to make efforts in that regard. The amount listed may be owed to coach over an extended period of time, rather than as a lump sum at termination. Amounts may take into account per-day pro-rating for a partial contract year.

USA TODAY Sports' Steve Berkowitz, Sean Dougherty and Leo Wotzak contributed to this reporting along with Robert Lattinville of WME, who represents college coaches and athletics directors as well as NCAA member schools.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: How much is Mike Gundy's buyout? Fired Oklahoma State coach's contract, bonuses from 2024

Reporting by Blake Schuster, For The Win / For The Win

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