Swimming

Dave Durden Received a $110,000 Raise to Take Over Cal Women’s Team

January 18, 2023

Cal head swimming & diving coach Dave Durden received a $110,000 raise to take over the women’s swimming & diving team after Teri McKeever was put on administrative leave last year, plus additional incentives for the team’s performance.

Durden has been the head coach of the men’s program for more than 15 years since being hired in fall 2007. Last summer, among a tumultuous period for the women’s team, Durden was asked to take over as acting head coach for Teri McKeever when the school put her on administrative leave while investigating abuse allegations.

While most head coaching contracts for combined-gender programs are written in a single contract, Cal gave Durden a separate contract to serve as acting head coach of the women’s team, though the general terms and conditions of those agreements are explicitly linked. This contract is for one season only, and can be extended if the two parties are negotiating a new contract.

Similarly to the contract of associate head coach David Marsh (whose base salary is $120,000, higher than Durden’s contract for the women’s team), Durden’s contract would terminate upon the return of head coach Teri McKeever, though as that investigation drags on, it seems increasingly-unlikely that she would return to the program, regardless of its outcome.

Durden’s base salary for coaching the men’s team is $270,000, plus incentives, which means that the combined value of his contracts makes him one of the highest-paid coaches in the NCAA.

Durden Incentives – Women’s Team

The contract has a maximum annual bonus payout of $54,000, which is unlikely to come into play in a rebuilding year for the Cal women. While the team is outperforming expectations under new leadership, a top 4 finish at NCAAs is unlikely.

Accomplishment	Bonus Amount
Pac-12 Coach of the Year	$2,000
National Coach of the Year	$3,000
Coach Named to Olympic or World Championship coaching staff	$3,000
Student-Athlete named to Olympic or World Championship team	$2,000
Per individual American or World Record broken	$3,000
Team wins Pac-12 Championship	$4,000
Per individual or relay NCAA title	$2,000
Team finishes top 4 at NCAA Championships	$13,000
Team finishes in top 2 at NCAA Championship	$12,000
Team wins NCAA Championship	$10,000

Season So Far

In spite of the loss of their top swimmer from last season Isabel Ivey, who recently announced that she will transfer to Florida, along with several other key contributors, the Cal women are outperforming expectations this year. They have won all 4 dual meets that they’ve competed in.

In unofficial scoring, they also beat the Texas women at the Minnesota Invite in December – a big result after the Texas women finished 2nd at NCAAs last year and improved their roster this season.

The Cal women have 6 swims currently ranked in the top 8 of the NCAA this season, including junior Isabelle Stadden, who ranks 4th in the 100 back and 3rd in the 200 back.

Stadden did enter the NCAA transfer portal over the summer among the height of the Teri McKeever controversy, but she ultimately decided to stay at Cal for this season.

SwimSwam: Dave Durden Received a $110,000 Raise to Take Over Cal Women’s Team