Louisiana Tech coach Sonny Cumbie has agreed to a new contract with the school that reduces his salary and allocates a portion of it to "player-enhanced benefits" and other areas of the program.
Cumbie, coming off of his best season with the Bulldogs, had a contract set to expire following the 2026 season. The new agreement, subject to Louisiana Board of Supervisors approval, runs through the 2028 season and will pay Cumbie $760,000 annually. Louisiana Tech will distribute $155,000 per year of Cumbie's contract toward the players and other key areas of the program, including the staff. His original deal, which began after his hiring in December 2021, spanned five years and paid a total of $4.85 million.
"I think that says a lot about his character; his willingness to take a pay cut and create an opportunity to help reinvest -- reallocate -- those funds back into the program. It will help the program have success," athletic director Ryan Ivey said in a statement. "In this day and age, some coaches aren't willing to do that. To most of them, it's about self-preservation. That is not the case with Sonny and what we have been able to do with this. I think it was the right thing to do by Sonny. I think it was the right thing to do by the program. And I think it was the right thing to do by our student-athletes."
Louisiana Tech president Jim Henderson described Cumbie's new contract as "incentive-based," and praised Cumbie and Ivey for reaching terms that are "smart, financially responsible in an era that defies that principle."
Cumbie is 19-31 overall at Louisiana Tech but has improved his wins total in each of the past two seasons. Cumbie also took pay cuts of $35,000 and $50,000 before the 2023 and 2024 seasons to increase the salary pool for Louisiana Tech's assistants and staff.