Salaries for head coaches in this week’s SC football state title games
The South Carolina High School League football state championships will take place this week at Benedict College. The games feature some of the most successful coaches in the Palmetto State as well as some top up-and-comers.
Earlier this year, The State compiled a database of the names and salaries of South Carolina head football coaches as furnished by public school districts in response to S.C. Freedom of Information Act requests.
Two of the 34 coaches in South Carolina who make over $100,000 annually have their teams in state title games. The salaries for the other state championship coaches range from the low $70s to low $90s annually.
Top-paid SC coaches
Here is a look at what this year’s championship coaches are making, sorted from highest to lowest. The figures shown below represent total annual compensation for the job for the 2022-23 school year — that includes any base teaching or job salary plus any supplements for being the coach, athletic director or other duties:
▪ Tom Knotts, Dutch Fork, $116,562: Knotts is the fourth-highest-paid coach in the state and has built the Silver Foxes into a powerhouse. Dutch Fork is playing in its 10th state championship in last 11 seasons and won a state-record five consecutive titles from 2016-20. Knotts also is the school’s athletic director.
▪ Steve LaPrad, Fort Dorchester, $102,914: LaPrad is in his 20th season as head coach at Fort Dorchester. He has the Patriots in their second state championship game. Fort D won it all in 2015. LaPrad has only had one losing season since 2005 and is also the school’s athletic director.
▪ Ken Cribb, Johnsonville, $92,442: Cribb has Johnsonville in first championship game since 2012. He has been the Flashes head coach since 2018 after stops at Hemingway and Georgetown high schools.
▪ Drew Marlowe, South Florence, $91,085: Marlowe is in his third year as head coach and has South Florence in its first championship appearance. Before South Florence, he was an assistant at Sumter High School for 11 seasons.
▪ Robert Mustar, Powdersville, $84,670: Mustar has been head coach at Powdersville since the school moved up to varsity athletics in 2012 and has the program in its first state championship game. Powdersville opened in 2011. Mustar also is school’s athletic director.
▪ Page Wofford, Northwestern $78,137: Wofford has Northwestern in its 12th state championship appearance and first since 2015. He was an assistant on 2015 Northwestern team and coached at school for six years. He went to at Daniel for a season before returning as Northwestern’s head coach in 2019. He’s also been an assistant coach at Carolina High School & Academy, Pickens, Wando and Hanahan.
▪ Jamie Nickles, Abbeville, $77,602: Nickles has been one of the most successful coaches in the state since being promoted to head coach in 2004. He has won more than 200 games and seven state championships, including four in a row from 2015-18. His seven state titles are tied with Jackie Hayes (Dillon) for third most all-time in state history.
▪ Bryce Lybrand, Beaufort, $76,054: Lybrand is in his fourth year as Eagles head coach and has them in playing in their second-straight championship game. He was an assistant at Beaufort before being promoted to head coach and also coached at Wando, Fort Dorchester and Providence High School in Charlotte
▪ Chad Wilkes, Oceanside Collegiate, $72,200: Wilkes is in his first year as Oceanside Collegiate coach and has the LandSharks in their first championship game. Wilkes, a former Cheraw High standout, was head coach at C.E. Murray and Lamar for combined five years before Oceanside.
▪ Quin Hatfield, Christ Church, N/A: Hatfield is in his third season as head coach and Christ Church is in his first championship game since 2014. Hatfield’s salary is unavailable because private schools aren’t subject to open records requests.
The only HS football coach in SC who works for free wouldn’t have it any other way
State championship schedule
All games at Benedict College’s Charlie W. Johnson Stadium in Columbia. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased through GoFan
Thursday, Dec. 1
Class 3A
Powdersville vs. Beaufort, 7 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 2
Class 2A
Abbeville vs. Oceanside Collegiate, 2 p.m.
Class A
Christ Church vs. Johnsonville, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 3
Class 5A
Dutch Fork vs. Fort Dorchester, noon
Class 4A
Northwestern vs. South Florence, 7 p.m.
