Big Ten Rankings: Top 5 highest paid football coaches

Dec 7, 2013; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio shakes hands with Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer after being after the 2013 Big 10 Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Michigan State Spartans derated Ohio State Buckeyes 34-24. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

When the Big Ten rankings come out next season, it’s almost certain that Michigan State will follow Ohio State when it comes to the top two spots in the conference. Although the Spartans will be on the outside looking in for the Big Ten crown, Mark Dantonio will have an opportunity to dethrone the Buckeyes and hand them their first loss in conference play under Urban Meyer.

Those two guys have been duking it out for the past three years and that’s one of the main reasons that they are some of the highest-paid coaches in the nation.

However, are they the top two highest-paid in the Big Ten? You’re going to have to find out by reading through the list and seeing who the top-five in the conference are. The top spots may surprise you, especially considering the small sample size of a couple of the names mentioned.

As for the highest-paid coaches in the conference, it usually comes down to results on the field translating to the amount of zeroes to the left of the decimal point on a paycheck, but you may see that it may not be the case on this list.

It’s amazing to see how much coaches make these days, but when national titles and conference titles are brought to a program, big dollar signs are sure to follow.

Let’s take a look at the highest paid football coaches in the Big Ten today.

Next: 5. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa