USF makes Abdur-Rahim among AAC’s highest paid men’s basketball coaches for the next season
Bulls’ men’s basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim is one to take to social media, whether it’s to encourage students to crowd the Yuengling Center, or to advertise one of his numerous on-campus appearances.
In true character – after signing a 6-year, $11.55 million contract last Wednesday to keep him at USF until 2030 – he voiced his thoughts online.
“I know the commitment that was made,” Abdur-Rahim said in the video posted on X last Friday. “I made that commitment a long time ago. I’m gonna double down on that.”
USF doubled down on Abdur-Rahim too – enough to raise his salary by nearly $4 million.
He originally signed a 6-year, $7.35 million contract with USF in March 2023.
With his new contract, the university made him the second-highest paid men’s basketball coach in the American Conference next season– a resounding statement of confidence in the man that arguably led USF to its best season in history in just his first year on campus.
The Bulls won a program-record 25 games last season en route to their first NIT appearance since 2010, a run that culminated in Abdur-Rahim being named the AAC Coach of the Year.
Related: Season in review: Taking a look at USF men’s basketball’s magical run
Abdur-Rahim will continue to receive an annual base salary of $500,000, plus additional compensation for promotional activities, fundraising events and media broadcasts.
He will receive $1.8 million in total pay next season, excluding bonuses. His additional compensation increases by $50,000 each year, with his salary topping out at $2.05 million during the 2029-2030 season.
He received a salary of $1.1 million last season, excluding bonuses. As outlined in his initial contract, Abdur-Rahim will maintain an automobile stipend of $800 or a courtesy car, as well as a provisional country club membership.
Some of the bonuses include $25,000 for an NCAA tournament appearance, $25,000 for a conference tournament championship and $30,000 for winning 25 games or more in a season.
Abdur-Rahim will trail Memphis’ Penny Hardaway as the AAC’s highest paid basketball coach for the 2024-25 season, surpassing Wichita State’s Paul Mills, who will earn just under $1.6 million next season, according to the Wichita Eagle.
Hardaway is set to receive a salary of $2.7 million next season, according to the University of Memphis.
Related: USF men’s basketball was gutted by the transfer portal. Here’s who remains on the roster.
Abdur-Rahim’s contract also slightly tops that of former Bulls head coach Brian Gregory, who received an annual salary of $1.6 million as part of his contract extension in 2022.
Gregory was fired less than two years into his three-year extension.
Abdur-Rahim’s deal is also nearly triple the annual compensation of women’s basketball coach Jose Fernandez, a perennial NCAA tournament participant and two-time AAC Coach of the Year.
Fernandez’s annual salary tops out at $800,000. His $750,000 salary last season was the highest of all women’s basketball coaches in the AAC, according to USA Today.
Abdur-Rahim will look to replicate a heroic season with a new-look supporting cast.
The Bulls have endured a tumultuous offseason with the losses of their three top-scorers – guards Chris Youngblood and Selton Miguel and forward Kasean Pryor.
Youngblood transferred to Final Four participant Alabama. Miguel and Pryor landed at Maryland and Louisville, respectively.
Abdur-Rahim isn’t backing down.
“I ain’t resting,” he said in the video. “I want more.”
Additional reporting by Joshua Hightower.
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