Wisconsin Athletic Director Chris McIntosh Earns Over $76,000 in Bonuses, Topping Most Badgers Coaches

Strategic Insights -

Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh earned a bonus of over $76,000 in the first year of his reworked contract, which includes incentive compensation tied to athletic performance and coaching bonuses. This puts him among the top earners in the program, with only women's hockey coach Mark Johnson having a higher bonus. McIntosh's contract was reworked in July 2024 to include two components contributing to incentive compensation, one based on academics and the other tied to the performance of the 18 head coaches.

Key Takeaways:

  • Chris McIntosh, Wisconsin athletic director, earned a bonus of $76,353.87 in the 2024-25 season as part of his reworked contract.
  • McIntosh's bonus was higher than all but one Badgers coach, with women's hockey coach Mark Johnson earning the highest bonus at $168,835.35.
  • McIntosh's contract includes a $30,000 bonus for an NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 92% and a $50,000 bonus for a GSR of 93% or higher. Wisconsin's 94% GSR for the 2023-24 season earned McIntosh the $50,000 bonus.
  • The second part of the bonus is 7.5% of the total incentive compensation earned by the 18 head coaches. McIntosh qualified for a $26,353.87 share of this total, bringing his bonus to $76,353.87.
  • Nine of the 18 head coaches qualified for bonuses in 2024-25 totaling $351,384.92.
  • The yearly cap on McIntosh's incentive pay is $200,000.
  • McIntosh had a salary of $1.45 million in 2024-25 and automatically bumped up to $1.5 million for the 2025-26 season.
  • Cross country and track coach Mick Byrne earned $37,977.68 in bonuses, which is 17% of his salary.
  • Women's tennis coach Kelcy McKenna got a 5% bonus, or $7,957.60, for qualifying the Badgers for the NCAA Tournament.
  • Men's rowing coach Beau Hoopman earned a $2,849.54 bonus (3%) for leading Wisconsin to an appearance at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association national championships.

Statistics:

  • McIntosh earned a bonus of $76,353.87 in the 2024-25 season.
  • Nine head coaches qualified for bonuses in 2024-25, totaling $351,384.92.
  • McIntosh's 7.5% share of the total incentive compensation earned by the 18 head coaches was $26,353.87.
  • The yearly cap on McIntosh's incentive pay is $200,000.
  • McIntosh had a salary of $1.45 million in 2024-25 and automatically bumped up to $1.5 million for the 2025-26 season.
  • Byrne earned $37,977.68 in bonuses, which is 17% of his salary.
  • McKenna got a 5% bonus, or $7,957.60, for qualifying the Badgers for the NCAA Tournament.
  • Hoopman earned a $2,849.54 bonus (3%) for leading Wisconsin to an appearance at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association national championships.

Sources:

  • BadgerExtra
  • University of Wisconsin athletic department documents
  • NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) figures released by the NCAA in November 2024