BILLINGS — The contract for new Montana football coach Bobby Kennedy is a one-year deal paying a $175,000 base salary — but with bonuses laid out in the agreement, his total could climb close to $390,000 in maximum stipulated earnings.
The contract, which was signed by Kennedy on Feb. 5 and runs through Feb. 3, 2027, was obtained Friday by Montana Sports.
View: Bobby Kennedy's coaching contract at Montana
While the deal puts Kennedy, 59, on the low end of the base-salary spectrum among top FCS coaches — Brent Vigen's contract pays him $295,000 in base earnings at Montana State, for example — Kennedy’s on-field incentives include:
- $5,000 for beating a team that made the FCS playoffs within the past two years
- $2,500 for beating a ranked FCS team in the regular season
- $7,500 for winning nine games
- $10,000 for winning 10-plus games
- $10,000 for winning the Big Sky Conference championship
- $5,000 for being named Big Sky Conference coach of the year
- $5,000 for being named Eddie Robinson national coach of the year
- $5,000 for making the FCS playoffs
- $2,500 for advancing to the second round (plus $1,000 if hosting)
- $4,000 for advancing to the quarterfinals (plus $5,000 if hosting)
- $5,000 for advancing to the semifinals (plus $5,000 if hosting)
- $10,000 for advancing to the national championship game
- $50,000 for winning the national championship
(Note: The contract states that payment for wins in the regular season and postseason is not cumulative.)
Meanwhile, the off-field bonus structure can pay Kennedy as much as $47,500.
He can earn as much as $12,500 for success in the classroom, including $5,000 for maintaining an academic progress rate score of at least 950 (four-year average) and $5,500 for maintaining a graduation success rate equal to or higher than the overall FCS rate.
Kennedy can earn an additional $2,000 for compliance with the so-called “0 for 2” rule — that no players can have zero academic credit for two straight terms.
Bonuses are also built into the contract for attendance benchmarks based on season tickets sold. That structure breaks down like this:
- 17,500: $4,000
- 18,000: $10,000
- 18,500: $15,000
- 19,000: $15,000
Kennedy will also earn an extra $20,000 for attending "all reasonably requested" athletic department and Grizzly Scholarship Association functions, per the contract language. These appearances serve to strengthen ties between the football program and its supporters, boost fundraising efforts and reinforce the coach’s visibility as a central figure in Griz athletics.
The agreement also outlines unspecified compensation opportunities tied to his required media and promotional appearances, including a weekly coach's show during the season.
If Kennedy is terminated without cause, UM will pay him the remainder of his salary and benefits, offset by any income earned in new employment. Termination for cause stops all pay beyond what’s already earned.
As a first-time head coach, Kennedy has stepped into one of the marquee jobs in the FCS. He is inheriting the program from Bobby Hauck, whose two separate stints in Missoula cemented him as one of the most successful coaches in the history of the subdivision before he later became defensive coordinator at Illinois.
Hauck, by the way, made $265,000 in annual base salary in his final contract with the Griz.
Kennedy's one-year deal gives him a short runway to prove his value, but if results follow — both on and off the field — he will have the chance to earn not only a future with the Grizzlies but a measure of his contract’s ceiling.
During his introductory press conference on Feb. 5 in Missoula, Kennedy alluded to his desire to make that a reality.
"This is going to be my last job. Whether it's long ... let's make it be long, OK?" he said. "Or however long it is, let me say that, I want this to be my last job. I want to do it with these guys, and I want to do it with these players and I want to do it with the great Griz fans and the people of Montana."
With Montana’s tradition and the high expectations that come with it, Kennedy’s debut season is as much an audition as it is an opportunity to establish himself as the longer-term leader of the program.
