How a contract change doubled Wisconsin coach Mark

Johnson earned more than $112,000 as a bonus when the Badgers defeated Ohio State for the national title. A restructuring of his contract last December doubled the amount he would have received beforehand.

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UW paid out more than $240,000 in bonuses for coaches and strength and conditioning staffers from four winter sports based on team postseason accomplishments.

The athletic department’s bonus policy awards a percentage of a coach’s salary or contracted amount, with higher rates for better finishes. Hockey coaches, for instance, get 5% for a conference championship and then anywhere from another 5% to 15% based on their finish in the NCAA Tournament.

Winning conference and national coach of the year awards also means extra money on the paycheck.

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In some cases, however, Badgers coaches have additional bonuses written into their employment agreements. That became the case with Johnson late last year when he signed a reworking of his five-year deal that bumped up his salary to $375,435 with a $10,000 increase each year.

His contract now makes his total bonus rate 15% if the Badgers lose in the Frozen Four semifinals, 25% if they lose in the NCAA championship game and 30% if they win the final.

Women’s hockey associate head coach Dan Koch and assistant coach Jackie Crum qualified for a bonus worth 15% of their salaries for winning the championship. That was more than $15,000 for Koch and more than $12,500 for Crum.

The UW Athletic Board approved recommendations for bonuses for winter sports coaches at its April 21 meeting. They’re subject to withholding and paid through UW’s payroll system from money held in an athletic department account at the UW Foundation.

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It isn’t only NCAA Tournament success that leads to bonuses being paid. Badgers men’s basketball coach Greg Gard received $30,000 for reaching the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament, more than the school was scheduled to gain for playing in the event.

The Badgers earned a $26,100 payout for being one of the final four teams in the tournament. They lost to North Texas in the semifinals.

UW’s bonus policy allots 3% for reaching the semifinals of a basketball postseason bracket other than the NCAA Tournament and 5% for winning it.

Coaches in wrestling and swimming and diving qualified for bonuses based on team and individual finishes at the NCAA championships.

Swimming and diving coaches earned a 5% bonus for placing in the top 20% of schools. The women’s team finished 15th and the men were 23rd. Coach Yuri Suguiyama and five assistants combined to receive more than $23,000.

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The bonus in wrestling was 2% for having at least one athlete qualify for the NCAA meet. Eight Badgers wrestlers went to nationals, and coach Chris Bono, associate head coach Jon Reader and assistant coach Seth Gross combined for bonuses exceeding $9,000.

UW paid 17 coaches or strength-and-conditioning coaches of winter sports teams a total of $242,857.34 in bonuses for the 2022-23 season. That was down 9.5% from the amount earned in 2021-22.

The total for fall sports was $311,149.65.