Oklahoma put its money where its mouth is on Tuesday, handing GM Jim Nagy a massive raise to $1 million annually to ensure the mastermind of the Sooners’ elite recruiting machine stays in Norman long-term.
The Sooners handed Nagy a fresh four-year contract extension worth $4.6 million that locks him in OU’s front office through 2030.
Per the contract approved by the OU Board of Regents, Nagy will now receive $1 million this year, with the deal increasing by $100,000 each year. This makes him the second-highest-paid coach in college football, just after UNC‘s Mike Lombardi, who makes $1.5 million annually.
He was originally signed to a three-year contract worth $2.55 million in February 2025. His annual value went from $850,000 to $1.15 million.
Athletic Director Opens Up On Jim Nagy’s Role with OU
Nagy was considered a total homerun back when the Sooners hired him last February. Ever since, the Executive Director of the Senior Bowl has seamlessly blended his expertise to build OU into a program in it’s own league.
His previous NFL front office experience, 18 years to be precise, including scouting roles with the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, and the Washington Redskins, showed why Nagy was able to create such an immediate impact, on both improving the program internally and recruiting better.
“It was critical,” OU athletics director Roger Denny told SoonerScoop. “You see what they’re doing, the results speak for themselves. But the thing that folks don’t necessarily see is the way he and his staff have come in and really integrated themselves so seamlessly with our coaching staff, and when you combine the work they’re doing on the evaluation and negotiation and the transactional side of it along with the work that our coaches do recruiting, it’s really a tremendous advantage for us. And we want to preserve that advantage as long as we can.”
Jim Nagy’s recruiting Class One of the Highest-Ranked
GettyOU Head coach Brent Venables/ OU athletic department offers GM Jim Nagy a massive contract extension.
With nearly two decades of NFL experience under his belt, Nagy brought his tried-and-tested recruiting tactics to Norman. Although he could not have much impact on the Class of 2026 due to his hiring timeline, his recruiting IQ paid immediate dividends in OU’s Class of 2027.
The Sooners’ 2027 Class, his first full one as the GM in control, currently ranks No. 3 in the country in 247Sports’ team rankings with 25 total commits. It would be the Sooners’ first top-5 class since 247Sports started releasing team rankings in 2010.
Denny mentioned how his reputation in the market was an undeniable pro of offering the extension.
“His reputation was out there,” Denny said. “A lot of folks around the sport knew he was, certainly knew that name. Getting to know him, he just approaches day-to-day with a good sense of humility and an incredible focus on the task at hand. So, like I said, really, really talented at taking the skillset he had and really integrating what BV and the rest of that staff looks for in young men that you don’t necessarily see on the tape. And they’ve done a really tremendous job of taking that and working with staff to go find those guys.”
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