ODU Athletics Director Wood Selig announced back on Dec. 12 that the school had agreed to terms on a four-year contract extension with football coach Ricky Rahne.
I held off on reporting on the news because I wanted details, which weren’t forthcoming right away.
I filed a FOIA request on Dec. 12 to try to get the details, got an email back from the FOIA office at Old Dominion University on Dec. 19 telling me that the school didn’t yet have a signed term sheet to get back to me.
Today, it’s in my hands.
Oddly, the term sheet now in my hands was signed by Rahne and by Wood on Dec. 11.
That’s another story for another day.
The story today: Rahne is making more than I would have assumed.
The deal, which runs through the end of the 2029 season, will pay Rahne:
- $1.1 million in 2026
- $1.15 million in 2027
- $1.2 million in 2028
- $1.25 million in 2029
From what I have been able to find online, Rahne was paid $854,887 for his work with respect to the 2025 season, which is slightly more than what JMU was paying Bob Chesney, who bolted for UCLA after leading the Dukes to the CFP in December.
Per an online report, Chesney was paid $833,495 for the 2025 season.
ICYMI
- JMU Football coach Bob Chesney set to take head-coach job at UCLA
- JMU, moving quickly, hires Billy Napier, former Florida football coach
His successor, Billy Napier, who was fired at Florida in October, will be paid a guaranteed $1.05 million per year over the course of his new five-year deal.
Napier was making $7.4 million a year on his seven-year deal at Florida, which was to run through the 2028 season.
Now he’s making less at a school that just went to the CFP than a guy who has one winning season in five years at ODU, which has yet to sniff the playoff.
Chesney, incidentally, got a five-year deal at UCLA paying him $6.75 million a year.
Back to Rahne: he’s getting a pretty good deal at ODU, it would appear.
In addition to the base pay, here are the incentives in his term sheet:
- A seven-win season gives Rahne a $25,000 raise for all subsequent contract years.
- Eight wins triggers a $50,000 raise for all subsequent contract years.
- Nine wins leads to a $75,000 raise for all subsequent contract years.
- Ten wins: $100K for all subsequent contract years.
The buyout isn’t bad for Rahne, who could find his name on the coaching carousel soon, given his success at ODU, where he was 10-3 this past season, and he’s taken the Monarchs to three bowl games.
The buyout starts at $500,000 if he happens to leave now, or soon, and drops to $400,000 on Jan. 1, 2027, $300,000 on Jan. 1, 2028, and $100,000 on Jan. 1, 2029.
JMU is holding Napier much closer to the vest: his buyout is $2.5 million between now and Feb. 28, 2028; it drops at that point to $1.75 million, through Feb. 28, 2029; and is $1.25 million ahead of the last year of the deal, in 2030.
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Chris Graham
