Kevin Schnall hired as South Carolina baseball coach. Here are his contract details
Kevin Schnall is officially the South Carolina baseball head coach.
The South Carolina Board of Trustees approved Schnall’s contract on Wednesday afternoon — a five-year deal through June 30, 2031, that will pay the former Coastal Carolina skipper an average base salary of $1.3 million. The contract has plenty of incentives that could drive his compensation even higher.
The more South Carolina wins and the further into the postseason the Gamecocks go, the higher Schnall’s pay will go.
Schnall’s contract includes incentives that could pay him no more than $280,000 above that $1.3 million base — including $200,000 if the Gamecocks win the College World Series under his guidance.
Schnall would receive a $50,000 toward his annual salary with an NCAA Tournament super regional appearance; $75,000 if USC reaches the College World Series; and $150,000 if the baseball team wins a national championship. That’s on top of already-set annual raises of $50,000.
USC will pay up to $600,000 toward his Coastal buyout.
The hiring of Schnall was reported on Tuesday — 81 days after South Carolina and Paul Mainieri parted ways midway through the season and 20 days after the Gamecocks let go of interim coach Monte Lee. The move takes Schnall away from Coastal Carolina, where he spent two years as a player (1998-99), 21 seasons as an assistant (2001-12 // 2016-24) and the past two years as the Chanticleers’ head coach.
After leading Coastal to the College World Series Final in 2025, where the Chants fell to LSU, the school rewarded Schnall with an extension and raise that paid him a base salary of $500,000 that included an extra $25,000 from Coastal’s multimedia partner, $100,000 into a tax-deferred account and a bevvy of high-value incentives: $2,000 for every week Coastal was ranked, $60,000 for making the super regional and $600,000 for winning the title.
SEC baseball coaches salaries for 2026 season
Note: The base salary of several coaches on this list changes from year-to-year. The most recent information The State could find for each coach is linked in the list.
- Jay Johnson, LSU: $3.35 million
- Brian O’Connor, Mississippi State: $2.9 million
- Tim Corbin, Vanderbilt: $2.45 million
- Jim Schlossnagle, Texas: $2.2 million
- Kevin O’Sullivan, Florida: $1.84 million
- Mike Bianco, Ole Miss: $1.625 million
- Butch Thompson, Auburn: $1.5 million
- Dave Van Horn, Arkansas: $1.45 million
- Paul Mainieri, South Carolina: $1.3 million
- Wes Johnson, Georgia: $1.3 million
- Nick Mingione, Kentucky: $1.275 million
- Rob Vaughn, Alabama: $1.275 million
- Skip Johnson, Oklahoma: $1.2 million
- Josh Elander, Tennessee: $1 million
- Michael Earley, Texas A&M: $950,000
- Kerrick Jackson, Missouri: $725,000
This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 4:27 PM.
