Derek Mason took a pay cut to come to Stillwater.
Mason, Oklahoma State’s new defensive coordinator, is set to make $1.1 million a year to join Mike Gundy’s staff, according to The O’Colly‘s Chris Becker. Mason’s contract is set to be a two-year deal, but the official contract is still in the works, according to Becker.
Mason made $1.5 million as Auburn’s defensive coordinator last season, meaning he is taking a $400,000 pay cut with his move to the Big 12 from the SEC. Mason’s new $1.1 million salary is still more than the $800,000 Jim Knowles made as the Cowboys’ DC this past season.
It’s crazy to see how far coaching salaries have come. In his first season as the program’s head coach, Mike Gundy made only $700,000.
Mason is tasked with reloading an OSU defense that ranked fifth nationally in total defense in 2021. The Cowboys ranked ninth in scoring defense, first in sacks and fourth in third-down defense. He is going to have to replace a good amount of starters from that group, as Malcolm Rodriguez, Devin Harper, Kolby Harvell-Peel, Christian Holmes, Israel Antwine, Tanner McCalister, Jarrick Bernard-Converse and Tre Sterling have all left this offseason.
Mason has the resume to demand the going rate for coveted defensive coordinators. Before calling plays at Auburn in 2021, Mason was Vanderbilt’s head coach from 2014 to 2020. He was also the DC at Stanford, where he held an associate head coach title for three seasons.
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