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NCAA Final Four coaches: Who's the highest-paid?

NCAA Final Four coaches for Wisconsin, Kentucky, Florida, and Connecticut have earned handsome bonuses for getting their teams this far, on top of their already generous salaries. But which coach is making out the best?

1. Kentucky Wildcats

David J. Phillip/AP/File
Kentucky head coach John Calipari hugs Julius Randle after an NCAA Midwest Regional final college basketball tournament game against Michigan, in Indianapolis. Kentucky won 75-72 to advance to the Final Four.

Coach: John Calipari

2014 compensation: $5.2 million

Final Four bonus: $175,000

Maximum bonus: $850,000

Calipari is the third-highest paid coach in the NCAA, behind Louisville’s Rick Pitino and Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski. In addition to being the highest-paid coach in the Final Four, he has the biggest incentive for winning: Another national title would earn him an extra $375,000 in bonus money. He coached in the NBA and at Memphis University before being hired as the Wildcats coach in 2009, and he’s had three Final Four appearances and one national title win in that time.

Calipari has been both praised and criticized for his recruiting style, in which he pitches Kentucky to elite high school players as a steppingstone to becoming a high draft pick in the NBA. coached three No. 1 overall NBA draft picks during his time at Kentucky.  

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