Matt Campbell has agreed to a new six-year contract worth $22.5 million, Iowa State Athletic Director Jamie Pollard announced Monday night on Twitter. The new contract increases Campbell’s annual compensation from $2.1 million to $3.5 million.
Pollard also announced the football coaching staff’s annual compensation pool has been increased by $1 million.
“I want to thank Jamie (Pollard) for respecting my desire to hold off these conversations until our regular season ended and also for being proactive in supporting the needs of my staff and team as we build a legacy at Iowa State University,” Campbell said in a university release. “The commitment that he and Iowa State have made to us – including some exciting facility enhancements on the horizon – has been critical to my vision for our team going forward.”
Iowa State completed the regular season with a 7-5 record in Campbell’s second season, including tying the school record with five Big 12 wins. The Cyclones won two games against top-five opponents (Oklahoma and TCU) on their way to a fourth-place finish in the Big 12, the program’s best finish since the Big 12’s inception.
“Matt and I agreed during the season to wait until after his last regular-season game to have these discussions,” Pollard said in the release. “Matt, Erica (Campbell), Ellen (Pollard) and I met last night at our house and had a wonderful discussion about what matters to their family, their staff and our program. It is awesome that we share common values about loyalty, hard work and family. I could not be more excited for our fans and our student-athletes to have someone like Matt leading our program. He stands behind what he says and I look forward to helping him fulfill his dream of making Iowa State football one of the best programs in the nation.”
Campbell’s name has been a hot one in coaching search circles across the nation. He had been circulated as a candidate for the head coaching positions at Tennessee and Nebraska, but this announcement can effectively shut down any of those rumors.
“We are just getting started at Iowa State,” said Campbell. “To see our culture rapidly developing in concert with some excellent incoming recruits, we are developing a foundation for a program on the brink of success. Most importantly, I want to continue this journey and take Iowa State and its fan base to levels it has never reached. Now, it’s time to hit the recruiting trail and continue to build on what has been achieved this season.”
Campbell will address the media in a press conference Tuesday morning.
