What’s the cost of winning?

In the Big 12, it’s more than what TCU was paying Jim Christian. Way more.

Christian’s salary, which according to the Star-Telegram was $590,000, would have ranked last in the Big 12 last year.

By a long shot.

The next lowest-earning coach was Texas Tech’s Billy Gillispie, who, according to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, makes $800,000 a year. Iowa State’s Frank Hoiberg ($850,000) was the only other Big 12 coach to make less than $1 million a year.

Kansas’ Bill Self, who guided the Jayhawks to a national championship game appearance this past season, is the conference’s top-earning coach with a salary of $3,375,657, according to USA Today.

On a national level, Christian’s salary was also considerably low.

John Calipari, head coach at Kentucky, who won the national championship Monday night, is the highest-paid coach in the country, bringing in nearly $5 million a year. Duke’s Mike Kryzyzewski, a four-time national champion, makes around $4.7 million a year while Louisville’s Rick Pitino, who took the Cardinals to the Final Four this year and won a national championship at Kentucky in 1996, has a salary of $3.9 million.

Those are the three top-earning coaches in the game, but others aren’t far behind.

Of the teams who finished in the top 25 of the final USA Today coaches poll, 21 were led by coaches earning more than $1 million a year.

The only top-25 coaches to earn less than Christian, Xavier’s Chris Mack ($484,399), Murray State’s Steve Prohm ($205,000) and Ohio’s John Groce ($307,985), who Christian replaced.
 

Here's a list of the salaries of each Big 12 coach from the 2011-12 season followed by a list of the salaries of each top-25 team: 

Big 12 salaries

Lon Kruger (OU): $1,272,437.51 — Tulsa World

Travis Ford (OSU): $1,612,499.94 — Tulsa World

Rick Barnes (UT): $2,400,000 — USA Today

Billy Kennedy (A&M): $1,000,000 — Associated Press

Billy Gillispie (Tech): $800,000 — Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Bill Self (Kansas): $3,375,657 — USA Today

Fred Hoiberg (Iowa State): $850,000 — USA Today

Frank Martin (Kansas State): $1,568,000 — USA Today

Jim Christian (TCU): $590,000 — Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Scott Drew (Baylor): $1,760,414 — USA Today

Bob Huggins (West Virginia): $2,000,000

Sources: USA Today, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Associated Press, Tulsa World

Top 25 salaries

1) Kentucky, John Calipari: $4,987,578
2) Kansas, Bill Self: $3,375,657
3) Ohio State, Thad Matta: $2,747,000
4) Louisville, Rick Pitino: $3,900,000
5) Syracuse, Jim Boeheim: $1,521,370
6) North Carolina, Roy Williams: $1,713,938
7) Michigan State, Tom Izzo: $3,120,900
8) Baylor, Scott Drew: $1,760,414
9) Florida, Billy Donovan: $3,639,800
10) Marquette, Buzz Williams: $2,834,645
11) Missouri, Frank Haith: $1,600,000
12) Wisconsin, Bo Ryan: $2,075,000
13) Indiana, Tom Crean: $2,240,000
14) Duke, Mike Krzyzewski: $4,699,570
15) Florida State, Leonard Hamilton: $1,500,000
16) Murray State, Steve Prohm: $205,000
17) Georgetown, John Thompson: $1,894,988
18) Cincinnati, Mick Cronin: $1,250,000
19) Vanderbilt, Kevin Stallings: $1,922,671
20) North Carolina State, Mark Gottfired: $1,200,000
21) Creighton, Greg McDermott: N/A
22) Michigan, John Beilein: $2,206,000
23) New Mexico, Steve Alvord: $1,089,000
24) Xavier, Chris Mack: $484,399
25) Ohio, John Groce: $307,985

Source: USA Today