Mississippi State wanted an elite baseball coach, and they paid the money that it takes to land one. New skipper Brian O'Connor will make an average annual salary of $2.9 million in Starkville. That makes him the second-highest paid coach in college baseball behind only Tennessee's Tony Vitello ($3 million).
New @HailStateBB skipper Brian O’Connor will make an average of 2.9 million a year. O’Connor is now the second highest paid coach in college baseball, only behind Tony Vitello. https://t.co/uK8aMgCGEu
— Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogers) June 6, 2025
It's a massive pay raise from what O'Connor was making at Virginia. His 2024 contract extension in Charlottesville put him at $1.4 million per year. That's being paid more than handsomely in college baseball, and yet it's still $1.5 million below what he'll be making at Mississippi State.
It's also a significant increase in compensation from what Mississippi State had been paying for a head coach previously. Chris Lemonis earned $1.35 million annually, which again, was in range of many of the top coaches in the sport but is not the elite money they'll now be putting forth.
On top of his $2.9 million a year base salary, Brian O'Connor has the opportunity to earn up to $500,000 extra from performance incentives in a given year. O'Connor will get an extra $50,000 for any of the following: winning the SEC regular season title, winning the SEC Tournament title, being named SEC Coach of the Year, being named National Coach of the Year.
Then there are his NCAA Tournament incentives. These do not stack atop one another, as he'll earn the bonus based on where his Bulldogs end their season. For making an NCAA regional, O'Connor will earn $50,000. That jumps up to $100,000 for a super regional appearance, $150,000 for a trip to the College World Series, $200,000 for making the College World Series finals, and $300,000 for winning the national championship.
Mississippi State investing at an elite level in college baseball
Mississippi State put up the type of money that made it impossible for Brian O'Connor to say no to taking the job. But landing him wasn't just about what he'll be earning. The resources to attract talent matters too, and that's an area the Bulldogs are expected to thrive going forward.
By all accounts, the expectation is that Mississippi State will have one of, if not the, top NIL budgets in college baseball. They've secured the funding to go out and do whatever is necessary to land the best players available on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal. Having an elite head coach is great, but if he doesn't have the necessary resources to get talent, he's not going to be successful.
This is high-end investment in all facets from MSU. They're committed to winning at the highest level in baseball moving forward.