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Pac-12’s highest-paid coach? It’s not Chris Petersen

Arizona’s Rich Rodriguez ranks as the highest-paid coach in the Pac-12 Conference this year, according to an annual analysis of college football coaching salaries conducted by USA Today.

Rodriguez’s bump stems largely from a retention bonus in his contract, which covers about half of his $6 million salary this year, USA Today reports.

Stanford’s David Shaw ranks second in the Pac-12 with a total compensation of $5.68 million. Washington’s Chris Petersen is third at about $4.13 million this year, and Washington State’s Mike Leach is seventh at just over $3 million.

Earlier this year, Petersen signed a contract extension with an average salary of $4.