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After over three decades of coaching excellence, veteran coach Guz Malzahn announced his retirement on Monday, February 2. He’s one of the innovative offensive masterminds in football who adopted the ‘no-huddle, up-tempo’ philosophy. His stints as head coach at Arkansas State, Auburn, and UCF were marked by massive success, earning a career HC record of 105-62.

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His contribution to football not only earned him a lot of respect and recognition but also hefty paychecks. As his coaching career comes to an end, let’s take a detailed look at Malzahn’s net worth and career earnings.

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What is Gus Malzahn’s net worth?

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Gus Malzahn has an estimated net worth of $10 million. Most of the wealth he acquired reflects his 35-year successful coaching career. His most notable stints were as the head coach at Auburn and UCF. He served eight seasons as head coach at Auburn and four seasons at UCF before returning to a coordinator role at Florida State.

Gus Malzahn’s Contract Breakdown

Malzahn signed a three-year contract with Florida State in November 2024, which runs through February 2028. It’s a hefty contract that pays him $1.5 million in 2025 and would have paid $2 million in 2026 and $2.5 million in 2027, with annual incentives and other bonuses. Before that, he announced his retirement from coaching.

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His contract also included a buyout clause, currently set at $4.25 million. However, it is unknown if the retirement covers a buyout. His contract also involved a vehicle allowance of up to $650 per month, four tickets to football games, two tickets to FSU regular-season home sporting events, and a mobile phone.

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What is Gus Malzahn’s salary?

According to Gus Malzahn’s contract with FSU, he received a base annual salary of $200,000, plus $1.3 million in additional compensation in 2025. His cumulative salary for his one-season stint at FSU was $1.5 million.  Malzahn was supposed to be paid $2 million, which goes up to $2.5 million in the next two seasons, but was retired way before.

His salary at UCF was more than twice his pay at FSU. Malzahn earned $5 million in base pay, plus additional allowances and bonuses. He didn’t have a buyout from the program when leaving the program.

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Gus Malzahn’s career earnings

YearTeamBase Earnings
2016Auburn Tigers$4,200,000
2017Auburn Tigers$4,200,000
2018Auburn Tigers$4,200,000
2019Auburn Tigers$4,200,000
2020Auburn Tigers$4,200,000
2021Auburn Tigers$4,200,000
2022UCF$4,000,000
2023UCF$4,000,000
2024FSU$5,000,000

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Gus Malzahn’s college and professional career

Malzahn started his football career as a wide receiver at the collegiate level. Graduating from Fort Smith Christian High School, he was a walk-on wide receiver for the Arkansas Razorbacks. He played under Ken Hatfield from 1984 to 1985 before transferring to Henderson State University.

He began his coaching career at the high school level as offensive coordinator in Arkansas. In 1991, he became the OC for Hughes High School and then the head coach for the next four seasons. He spent 15 years coaching at the high school level and stepped up as Arkansas’s OC and WRs coach in 2006.

He had a brief stint in Tulsa and Auburn as co-OC, OC, QB coach, and assistant head coach before turning into a head coach at Arkansas State in 2012. The Sun Belt title win with the Razorbacks earned him an offer at Auburn before the bowl game. His success continued with the Tigers, whom he led to the SEC title in 2013.

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He had immense success at Auburn but slowly faded in later seasons. He finished with a 68-35 record with the Tigers before joining UCF as HC. He helped the Knights transition from the AAC to the Big 12 and reach the AAC championship game in 2022.

However, the Big 12 transition ended his head coaching career at UCF in 2024. He had a career HC record of 105-62 in collegiate coaching. He got back as the offensive coordinator at FSU, signing a three-year contract. But he wrapped up his coaching career after one season.

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Gus Malzahn’s brand endorsements

Gus Malzahn hasn’t been a part of any official brand endorsements or involved in merchandise or commercial deals. Instead, Malzahn promoted his program, players, and campaigns through his social media handles. He gifted $250K cash to UCF’s “Mission XII” campaign and promoted student athletes by adding UCF players’ jerseys on his social media to boost their personal brands.

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