Charlie Weis coached the Notre Dame football team from 2005 to 2009, amassing a record of 35-27 before he was fired and replaced by current Fighting Irish coach Brian Kelly.
But according to federal tax filings released by Notre Dame on Monday, Weis earned $2,054,744 from his former employer over the reporting period of July 2014 through June 2015. That’s roughly $430,000 more than Kelly earned from the university during the same period.
What’s more, Notre Dame confirmed to USA Today that only two university employees earned more than Weis: vice president and chief investment officer Scott Malpass, who earned close to $5.4 million in total compensation, and Michael Donovan, the university’s managing director for private capital investments, who was credited with over $2.3 million in compensation of the same period.
Since Weis was fired in November 2009, he has earned a whopping $16,912,123 from Notre Dame. And because the university has scheduled “additional annual payments” for Weis through the December 2015 pay period, he is owed one final paycheck for his services in South Bend, Indiana. That will put his final buyout sum from Notre Dame at $18,966,867.
Not bad for a coach who won one bowl game in five seasons with the Irish.
After leaving Notre Dame, Weis bounced around college football and the NFL. He spent one season as the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs and a subsequent season as the offensive coordinator at Florida. Most recently, Weis spent three years at the helm of Kansas’ football program. During his three years with the Jayhawks, the team went 6-22 (1-18 in Big 12 play).
Weis is now without a job in football. But Notre Dame’s recently released tax filings suggest that unemployment, however long it lasts, won’t been too tough on him.