The salaries for Oregon State assistant football coaches are significantly lower in 2026 than in previous years, signaling the impact of the old Pac-12’s collapse on the program’s revenue streams and ability to spend.
Head coach JaMarcus Shephard will make $1.6 million total in 2026, which ranks seventh of eight coaches in the new Pac-12. Kirby Moore’s salary at Washington State is a reported $2 million.
The Oregonian/OregonLive obtained OSU’s assistant coach contracts via public records request this week to see how they stack up to athletic director Scott Barnes’ declared budget of $3 million for Shephard’s assistants. OSU has an additional $2 million budgeted for staff positions, Barnes said, including football general manager Eron Hodges.
The Beavers are nearly half a million dollars under their assistants budget based on the contracts completed so far: $2.56 million split across 10 assistant coaches.
But here’s the kicker: two of those coaches bailed on OSU less than a month after they were hired. Defensive coordinator Lance Guidry left for Memphis, and defensive line coach Inoke Breckterfield for Utah.
With their salaries removed, OSU still has $1.06 million to spend up to its declared budget. It remains to be seen if and when Guidry and Breckterfield will be replaced.
Breckterfield was set to make $325,000, and Guidry $300,000 with a massive increase to $575,000 in year two. Breckterfield and Guidry’s 2026 salaries ranked second and third among OSU assistants, respectively.
Guidry and Breckterfield’s new employers will each be responsible for a $50,000 buyout of their contract, totaling $100,000 paid to OSU for their sudden departures.
Offensive coordinator Mitch Dahlen is the highest-paid assistant on Shephard’s staff at $400,000. Here is the full list:
Mitch Dahlen (offensive coordinator): $400,000
*Inoke Breckterfield (defensive line): $325,000
*Lance Guidry (defensive coordinator): $300,000 ($575,000 in year two)
Cort Dennison (Co-DC/linebackers): $275,000
Jeff Eaton (strength and conditioning): $250,000
Ricky Brumfield (special teams): $225,000
James Finley (wide receivers): $225,000
Ryan Wallace (tight ends): $225,000
Kirk Barron (offensive line): $200,000
Dan Rowe (nickels): $140,000
These numbers are in stark contrast to the money spent on assistants in the first year under previous coach Trent Bray (2024). Bray’s salary was $2 million, and his salary pool for assistant coaches alone was $4.85 million.
The Beavers came in well under budget then, too, but the numbers — particularly among the coordinators — are staggering in comparison:
Ryan Gunderson (OC): $725,000
Keith Heyward (DC): $725,000
Kyle Devan (OL): $600,000
Kefense Hynson (WR): $390,000
Ilaisa Tuiaki (DL): $350,000
Jon Boyer (TEs): $300,000
Jamie Christian (ST): $300,000
Anthony Perkins (CB): $270,000
AJ Cooper (ILB): $250,000
Thomas Ford (RB): $250,000
In a wide-ranging Q&A with The Oregonian/OregonLive on Monday, Shephard addressed the departures of Breckterfield and Guidry, saying he had already identified people who were next up on his list of potential candidates before the two coaches left.
“I want guys here who want to be here,” Shephard said. “That’s what I focus on, and making sure that I don’t lose the integrity of what was the whole intent of the guys that we’re gonna bring into this program. And it’s that they be elite human beings first. I’m not gonna bring people in this program that I feel like are gonna embarrass Oregon State, this staff, themselves or myself.”