The Notre Dame Fighting Irish paid handsomely to keep Mike Elko from departing his defensive coordinator position after just one year, according to tax documents released today by the university.
Elko was given $1,486,376 — including a one-time $494,666 payment — for his tenure between July 1, 2017 and June 30, 2018. The defensive coordinator departed Jan. 4 for the same position with the Texas A&M Aggies.
Elko’s total compensation was just $178,644 less than the university paid head coach Brian Kelly, who earned $1,665,020 for the same period.
(It’s important to note here that Kelly is “permitted to receive compensation from external sources” and, because the university is not party to those agreements, it’s not reported on this tax form.