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Clemson's Dabo Swinney becomes the best-paid college football coach in history

April 27, 2019 at 3:44AM
FILE - In this Jan. 14, 2017, file photo, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney, right, with his wife Kathleen, and sons, Clay, Drew, and Will ride in a vintage car during a parade honoring the NCAA college football champions, in Clemson, S.C. Swinney has agreed to the biggest contract in college football history, paying him $92 million over the next 10 years. Trustees approved the contract Friday, April 26, 2019, which runs through 2028. (AP Photo/Richard Shiro, File)
Swinney (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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After winning two national titles in three years, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney has received the biggest contract in college football history.

University trustees approved the 10-year, $92 million deal Friday. It runs through 2028 and includes two new clauses to make sure Swinney, 49, stays with the Tigers and stays one of the sport's best-paid coaches as long as he keeps winning.

The buyout in Swinney's contract increases significantly if he leaves Clemson to coach at Alabama, where he was a walk-on wide receiver and assistant coach in the 1990s. Swinney must pay $4 million if he leaves Clemson before the end of this year, but the buyout increases to $6 million if he coaches the Crimson Tide.

The deal also requires Swinney to be one of the three highest-paid coaches in college football any season after his team makes the playoff semifinals or he can leave without penalty.

Swinney's contract is bigger than the $74 million, eight-year deal Alabama's Nick Saban has through 2025 and the 10-year, $75 million contract Jimbo Fisher signed with Texas A&M through 2027.

Swinney's first head coaching contract at Clemson, in 2009, paid him $800,000 a year, the lowest salary in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He went 15-12 his first two full seasons and is 97-15 since then. Hs team has played in the past four college football playoffs and won two national titles, both over Alabama.

Golf

Woods appears set to sit out until PGA

Masters champion Tiger Woods is not ready to get back to work.

Woods did not enter the Wells Fargo Championship next week in Charlotte, N.C., meaning he likely will go a month without playing until the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black on May 16-19.

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"He's not hurt, but he is being smart," said Mark Steinberg, his agent at Excel Sports Management.

This would be the third time Woods did not play between majors. He went nine weeks between the 2006 Masters and U.S. Open when his father died and eight weeks between the 2008 Masters and U.S. Open when his left leg was injured.

Malnati-Hurley team leads

• Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley III topped the Zurich Classic leaderboard at 14-under 130 when darkness suspended second-round play in the team event at TPC Louisiana in Avondale. Malnati and Hurley played 36 holes Friday, shooting a best-ball 9-under 63 in the morning in the rain-delayed first round and a 67 in alternate-shot play in the afternoon in the second round.

• Tom Pernice Jr. and Scott Hoch teamed to shoot a 9-under 62 in best-ball play to take the first-round lead in the PGA Tour Champions' Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf in Ridgedale, Mo. Three teams were a stroke behind.

• Minjee Lee eagled the par-4 14th hole, shooting a 2-under 69 that gave her the lead in the LPGA Tour's Hugel-Air Premia LA Open.

AROUND THE HORN

College basketball: NCAA men's champ Virginia won't go to the White House to celebrate with President Donald Trump because of, coach Tony Bennett tweeted, "players pursuing pro opportunities."

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Doping: Half-marathon world record holder Abraham Kiptum was provisionally suspended for doping, two days before he was to run the London Marathon.

Men's tennis: Rafael Nadal overcame Jan-Lennard Struff 7-5, 7-5 and advanced to the semifinals of the Barcelona Open, where he will face Dominic Thiem, the only player to have beaten Nadal on clay in each of the past two seasons.

MLS: LA Galaxy midfielder Romain Alessandrini will be sidelined until September after left knee surgery.

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