Kenny Dillingham‘s new compensation package at Arizona State will be voted on by Arizona’s Board of Regents in a meeting scheduled for Feb. 19, according to a report from Sun Devil Source. He is set to make $6.4 million in base compensation if the contract is approved.
The deal works around Arizona’s state law of a maximum five-year term by including “trigger events” that would extend the life of the deal. And they’re not particularly hard to obtain anymore.
Should Dillingham win at least three games in a season or Arizona State sell 25,000 season tickets, his term will be extended by an additional contract year. The season ticket sales supersedes winning three games; so long as the 25,000-ticket mark is reached, Dillingham can have his contract extended even if winning fewer than three games.
Sun Devil Source also reports that Dillingham wanted two other things from Arizona State. First, he wanted an increased salary pool for assistant coaches and support staffers. Second, he wanted the easier-to-achieve rollover structure and “the university’s contractual commitment to help fundraise.”
Dillingham previously received $5.8 million in base pay. Arizona State winning eight games in 2025 earned him a $200,000 bump on that figure, bringing him to $6.0 million before the newly proposed raise in the contract.
As for buyouts, Dillingham’s shifts pretty rapidly. He would owe the school $9 million if he leaves before Dec. 1. That number drops to $4 million the following year and decreases by $1 million in each subsequent year. Should he trigger a rollover year, the buyout would decrease to $5 million.
This past coaching cycle, Dillingham’s name was bandied about for a handful of openings. Most prominently, he was associated with Michigan, which ultimately ended up hiring former Utah coach Kyle Whittingham.
Dillingham, who was previously an offensive coordinator at Oregon, arrived at Arizona State ahead of the 2023 season.
After going 3-9 in Dillingham’s first year, Arizona State then went 11-3 and reached the College Football Playoff by winning the Big 12 in 2024. The Sun Devils went 8-5 in 2025.