The University of Utah has extended Athletics Director Mark Harlan’s contract on the heels of perhaps the Utes’ most successful year in school history.
Harlan’s new contract runs through June 30, 2028, the U. announced Thursday. It will soon push the AD’s total compensation over $1 million annually.
“Mark is one of the top athletic directors in the country,” University of Utah President Taylor Randall said in a news release. “He is the right person at the right time to continue leading our athletic programs as we navigate the changing landscape of collegiate athletics. I look forward to continued partnership with him and his impressive leadership team in the years ahead.”
The AD is set to earn a base salary of $850,000 in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1. That base salary will increase by $50,000 each year, topping out at $1.1 million in the final year of his current deal.
Harlan will earn a retention bonus for each year of his contract. The bonus starts at $100,000 and increases by $50,000 yearly until it reaches $350,000 in 2028.
Additionally, Harlan is eligible for “performance compensation” up to an additional $200,000 each year.
Those numbers put Harlan in line with the average total compensation for a Pac-12 AD, according to a 2021 analysis by AthleticsDirectorU.com. It’s still only half what Texas AD Chris Del Conte ($2.4 million) and Tennessee director of athletics Danny White ($2.2 million) reportedly make annually.
Harlan’s new deal comes after a banner year for Utah athletics. The Utes won seven league championships — five in the Pac-12 (football, gymnastics, women’s basketball, tennis, softball), one in the RIMSA (skiing), one in the ASUN (lacrosse) — across all sports during the 2022-23 campaign. In March, Harlan was named the 2023 Athletics Director of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics.
“I’m grateful for the show of support from President Randall, and I look forward to the continued success of our student-athletes in the classroom, competition and community,” Harlan said in a statement. “I’m incredibly proud of the achievements our programs have earned in recent years, and the culture of excellence that has been established. I’m also grateful for the hard work of everybody in our Utah Athletics family, and the incredible support from our fans and donors. Our student-athletes, coaches and staff are elite, and it is a privilege to continue to lead this department.”
Harlan came to Utah in 2018 from the University of South Florida where he held the same position. During that time, he’s seen Utah football win two Pac-12 championships and make two Rose Bowl appearances, has overseen Utah’s move into the NCAA’s Name, Image and Likeness era, and has opened the new south end zone complex at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
