Florida male basketball coach Leonard Hamilton agreed to a five-year extension to the 2024-2025 season, which will pay him $ 2.25 million a year plus bonuses, the school announced on Monday.
Hamilton, 72, is the most winning coach in the school’s history and has the Seminoles on the verge of winning consecutive ACC titles in the regular season. The state of Florida is currently 14-4 and first in the ACC, and is the team with the best ranking in the league in 11th in the last AP vote.
In his 19th season in the state of Florida, Hamilton won the ACC Coach of the Year, two ACC titles three times, and led the Seminoles to seven NCAA tournaments.
Hamilton’s contract expired last year, but due to the coronavirus pandemic and financial constraints within Florida’s athletic department, the two sides have been working to close a deal.
Although his salary remains the same as in his previous contract, Hamilton has a bonus structure in place that would allow him to earn more than an additional $ 2 million if he reaches all of his benchmarks. This includes winning $ 150,000 for winning the ACC regular season, $ 200,000 for making the NCAA tournament, plus $ 50,000 for being one of the top 4 finishers and more depending on how far the team progresses.
“Coach Hamilton has done so much for this basketball program and for this university that it is difficult to put it in words,” Florida State Athletic Director David Coburn said in a statement. “What he does with his youth, on and off the court, is really remarkable. I know the president (John Thrasher) and I consider him a university treasure, and he is only now receiving the national recognition he deserves for so long. He incorporates all the qualities that make a great leader, and we are proud and thrilled to have him as our coach for as long as he wants. “