Ultimately this is Gary’s call and he needs to make a decision as to whether he wants to build a legacy or turn this place into a commuter campus. — LeFan

What do you mean by this? Gary May needs to give Plough a raise, among other things?
In what scenario would Davis become a commuter campus? (genuinely curious)

yeah I don’t really know about that. I think personally Davis could do some things to raise national profile for athletics but commenter school is a headscratcher

It has been said that everyone has a price and, according to the numbers I've been able to find, Plough could basically make around 3 times as much as he makes here compared to what Bray's contract was at OSU. That certainly a significant amount of money and, who knows, they could even offer more.

However, we all know that Plough's love of Aggie football runs deep. He has often spoken eloquently about the "Aggie way" of creating a supportive football program that is much, much more than simply winning and, in doing so, being able to bring in elite athletes who value education, tradition and personal growth as much as championship quality football and choose to stay here for 4 years and graduate with prestigious degree.

We've seen players like Lan Larison turn down thousands of dollars to stay rather than transfer to "bigger" programs because of their love of Aggie football and their commitment to their teammates and coaches. The Aggie football environment meant more than a whole lot of money. If Plough gets offered big money at a bigger school and turns it down to stay here, he will be leading by example and doing the very thing he hopes his best players will do when they are offered huge sums of money to go elsewhere.

Trent Bray and Oregon State agreed to a five-year contract when he signed on to be head coach in November of 2023. He held a base salary of $1.2 million, while in totallity his salary was at about $2 million per year.

ESPN reports that his buyout, because it is two years into his contract, is upwards of $4 million.

https://eu.statesmanjournal.com/story/sports/college/oregon-state/2025/10/12/trent-bray-fired-oregon-state-beavers-football-coach/86660574007/

Big Sky head coaches total compensation contracts including incentive bonuses:

1. Brennan Marion - Sac State: up to $1,099,304
2. Brent Vigen - Montana State: up to $897,500
3. Bobby Hauck - Montana: up to $663,000
4. Paul Wulff - Cal Poly: up to $621,004
5. Thomas Ford - Idaho: $428,500
6. Brian Wright - Northern Arizona: $415,000
7. Tim Plough - UCD: $370,400
8. Cody Hawkins - Idaho State: $338,000
9. Aaron Best - Eastern Washington: $332,357
10. Mickey Mental - Weber State: $325,000
11. Ed Lamb - Northern Colorado: $300,616
12. Bruce Barnham - Portland State: $225,000

Guaranteed compensation:

1. Brennan Marion: $734,504
2. Brent Vigen: $550,00
3. Bobby Hauck: $411,000
4. Paul Wulff: $350,004
5. Thomas Ford: $350,000
6. Tim Plough: $325,400
7. Brian Wright: $280,000
8. Aaron Best: $277,357
9. Cody Hawkins: $230,000
10 Tie. Mickey Mental: $215,000
10 Tie. Bruce Barnham: $215,000
12. Ed Lamb: $203,116

More details here: https://406mtsports.com/college/big-sky-conference/university-of-montana/how-do-football-coaching-salaries-compare-across-the-big-sky-conference-in-2025/article_0723fd85-4943-4f09-98aa-054881397854.html#:~:text=UC%20Davis%20coach%20Tim%20Plough,his%20debut%20season%20in%202024.

Safe to say, Marion, Ford and Wulff are overpaid, Plough is underpaid. Ford's got a pretty sweet deal, because that money goes far in Latah County Idaho.

While I’ll stick with my previous statement that Plough isn’t going anywhere, i do know that program support, or lack of, is very bothersome to him. He has repeatedly said that if he has a level playing field he would win a national title. He quotes figures from Montana, 500 donors donating $1,000 each. If program support from alumni and fans doesn’t continue to increase, that could be a nail in the coffin.
With that said, he was touched by the big group we had at lunch last week. It had to be a record, lots of new folks I’ve never seen before. Excitement seems to be brewing.

If program support is a big deal to Plough, why would he leave his self proclaimed "dream job" to take a job on a much less level playing field than the Big Sky and FCS? Oregon State can't win in today's college football and nobody wants them. That job is a dead end. 3x the pay for 3-4 years of aggravation before you're fired. Bray (former OSU HC) was an alum and a rising star as a D-coordinator and he got fired after 1.5 seasons. I highly doubt that Plough would uproot his family, have the kids change schools and the wife resettle, and leave his dream job to go coach against the same teams he'll be facing in 3-5 years anyway. I agree that he should leverage this situation to better his situation and the situation of his coaching staff and the program, but it would not be smart to take the Oregon State job. No one can ever accomplish what Erickson and Riley did there ever again. They don't have the money or the bandwidth to compete and win consistently.

I agree with you that Oregon State wouldn't be a good fit for Plough, and I'm thinking OSU probably realizes he wouldn't be a good fit for them at this point. You're absolutely correct that Oregon State is a really tough place to win, especially right now.

To get back to any type of relevancy, first in Oregon, then at the Group of 6 level, and (hopefully) eventually beyond, OSU needs someone who has more than a good coaching resume. They need someone whose name and/or background brings instant credibility to Corvallis. Someone whose hire might also raise the stature of the new Pac 12 as a whole. Not sure they can get that kind of person, but a rising star with a successful 1 1/2 year HC stint isn't going to be that guy.

I think Plough is smart enough to know that he would be the type of hire OSU settled for, rather than being the guy they really wanted. He wouldn't even have the built in connection that Bray had. Given the condition the Oregon State football program...and maybe the whole athletic program, his situation would likely be exactly as you described, "3-4 years of aggravation before you're fired." Career killer.

My nomination as the guy that should top their list, would be Mike Gundy. In addition to the "name/credibility" quality, he shown he can rebuilt a program in a P%/4 conference, that when he arrived, was probably much like Corvallis is today. The caveat would be, could Gundy better adapt to the NIL era than he did at the other OK State?

Gundy's got to be taking a nice long break at this point - I think it'd be a decent hire for Oregon State though, but does Gundy want to roll back into work so quickly? Still, candidates won't consider the Oregon State job unless a) it was the first big HC offer they got and that's the goal of the candidate or b) the Beavs finally realign into a full, proper conference with decent prospects.

Right now, the 2026 Pac 8 is what, Oregon State, Wazzu, Boise, Colorado State, Fresno, San Diego State, Texas State and Utah State. I mean, that's not drawing top dollar vs. the Big 4.

If Plough gets offered big money at a bigger school and turns it down to stay here, he will be leading by example and doing the very thing he hopes his best players will do when they are offered huge sums of money to go elsewhere. — BlueGoldAg

This is a good point. Its a good opportunity to show his guys (and future guys) they are fully supported.

If program support from alumni and fans doesn’t continue to increase, that could be a nail in the coffin. — agalum

No matter how much you love something, if you don't feel supported its hard to stay committed.
(that was deep :roll: )

The school / alums need to do their part if they really want something great

For the right school (Cal, Stanford. Big 10) I don’t think there is much that alumni can do and I mean that respectfully. He’s coaching his way into those conversations. I’m sure he loves his family more than Davis and that P4 salary is just insane. They say, the best job in the world is a failed P4 coach.

Case in point James Franklin - his Penn State buyout is something like $47 Million.

Exactly! Even Trent Bay is owed around 4 million. How do you tell the wife no to that?! Haha

Gundy would be a great fit if he'll play the NIL game. Corvallis not drastically different than Stillwater aside from the climate. Perfect spot for a good 'ol boy; Erikson was just that, but also a bit of a savant to boot. All comes down to NIL and roster management these days.

I agree that Gundy may not be interested for any number of reasons. He was my best example of a guy who checks the boxes that Oregon State should have on their list:

Proven HC record in a power conference.
Track record of building a historically bad program (OK State has never had an Erickson or Riley) into a contender for conference championships and beyond.
Success at a school/town not unlike OR State/Corvallis
A name that would give OR State football instant credibility with Alimni, boosters, potential recruits and transfers.
Record of developing hidden gems into standout players
Some potential of bringing players from previous school with him (maybe)

Concerns that need addressing through interviews:
Embracing NIL and the transfer portal
Building an effective staff

No matter how much you love something, if you don't feel supported its hard to stay committed.
(that was deep :roll: )

The school / alums need to do their part if they really want something great — SochorField

100% true. It sounds like Plough is pulling 18-19 hour days sometimes during the season. He and his staff are working their butts off and they've made tremendous progress in just a little over a year. Plough says he can win a national championship but he has to have the resources to do it and that means leveling the playing field with schools like the Montanas and the Dakotas.

Plough and his staff are doing their part but, if the fans and the donors don't do their part, then I could see him looking for an opportunity to build something great elsewhere. The donors, fans and students need to step it up!

Plough says he can win a national championship but he has to have the resources to do it — BlueGoldAg

100% believe this.

I'll preface this by saying I've never been offered mid-6 or 7 figures to do a job and very likely never will.

That being said, money isn't everything. Yes, $1.2-$2M (the reported range of the OSU coach's salary) is a lot more than the $300-400K that Plough is making. But you can still live quite comfortably on $300K per year. And if it's a job you really like, it's easier to pass up that extra money. It's not like a situation where you're living paycheck to paycheck and get the chance to quadruple your salary.

Most of these coaches are going to jump at the chance to challenge themselves at a bigger program, especially the younger guys like Plough is. But there are always exceptions to the rule and I'm sure there are other guys who could go to bigger programs but choose to stay where they are because they like the lifestyle. And maybe the stress of being the head coach of even a school like Oregon St, which itself is a much different animal from the top programs in the nation, isn't worth the extra money.