Arizona State and football coach Kenny Dillingham have agreed to a new five-year contract that will put him in the top tier of coaching salaries in the Big 12, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.

According to sources, Dillingham’s five-year contract includes a 10-year extension. While Arizona law limits public school contracts to five years, sources say incentives ensure the deal is extended to 10 years.

The new contract includes a wide-ranging commitment to football at Arizona State, which won the Big 12 this season and plays Texas in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals on Wednesday. It was the school’s first straight conference title since 1996.

The deal will come with the addition of 20 more football scholarships next season as rosters look to expand to 105. According to sources, the deal includes an increased commitment to staff, and ASU also plans to have a full share of the revenue share.

Arizona State won the Big 12 after being picked last in the preseason poll – 16th overall. And that significant commitment reflects the school’s desire to remain at the top of the Big 12.

“We are in national conversation,” said a source with knowledge of the deal. “We are committed to providing our program with the resources to remain in the national conversation and compete nationally for the best coaching talent and recruit the talent to compete at the highest level.”

With a base salary of $4.05 million, Dillingham is currently among the bottom coaches in the Big 12. But he has already earned more than $2.5 million in bonuses after leading ASU to an 11-2 season – and conference titles. The extra bonus money puts him at the top of the league.

This bonus amount is expected to increase to over $3 million later this spring with anticipated academic bonuses. Any win in the CFP would also bring a significant bonus, with participation in the semifinals and finals each worth nearly $200,000.

Dillingham famously gave away one of his bonuses — $200,000 for ASU’s ninth win — to members of the support team. This new deal is expected to give him bonus money, which sources say he can distribute to employees and use as he sees fit, so it doesn’t come out of his pocket.

ASU increased its football operating budget by more than 45% in 2024 compared to 2023. The program also proactively signed offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo and defensive coordinator Brian Ward to new three-year contracts in late November to preserve the staff’s top talent. These deals average more than $1 million per year, which is on the high end for Big 12 coordinator salaries.

In 2024, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy led all Big 12 coaches in salary at $7.75 million, and he ended up taking a pay cut after going winless in the league stayed. Dillingham’s new base salary is expected to be at the highest level in the league, and there will continue to be significant bonus incentives.

Dillingham is a Scottsdale native who graduated from Arizona State University and has long called the school his dream job. And that label came years before he was hired. Every step in his career – Memphis, Auburn, Florida State and Oregon – came with the goal of returning to ASU as head coach.

“Fit is so important,” Dillingham said earlier this week. “And understanding the place here, I think it’s helped the adjustment and the transition because I just understand what the school and the town is about and recruiting new people to the school. So you want people who understand this as much as you do.” I think my knowledge of the place definitely helped.

Dillingham went 3-9 in his first year at ASU in 2023, and the Sun Devils’ turnaround to 11 wins and a Big 12 championship was one of the most remarkable stories in college football. ASU’s championship title earned it a bye in the first round of the College Football Playoff.