Ohio State football: Strength coach Marotti gets new contract, raise

»RELATED: Buckeyes are Ryan Day’s team now

Marotti has agreed to a new contract that will pay him a base salary of $735,000, up from an initial salary of $516,000 that was part of his previous deal.

The new pact, provided to Cox Media Group Ohio in response to an open records request, runs through Jan. 31, 2023, and pending OSU Board of Trustees approval, replaces a previous deal that was to run through April 30, 2020.

He is eligible for annual raises as well as bonuses, including 4.25 percent if the Buckeyes win the Big Ten championship game and 21.25 percent if they are selected to a College Football Playoff bowl. If OSU ends up in a non-CFP bowl, Marotti’s bonus is 4.25 percent.

A university spokesman indicated the board is expected to vote on the contract later this month.

It also includes a provision that calls for him to pay the school $100,000 if he “accepts employment or performs services in an athletic strength and conditioning positions or as director of a collegiate athletic strength and conditioning program” with a professional team or for a school in the Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, ACC, SEC, Notre Dame or BYU.

That is up from $30,000 in his previous contract.

Although he is known best as the leader of the strength and conditioning program for the football team, Marotti bears the title assistant athletic director for sports performance and oversees the strength and conditioning program for all Ohio State teams.

According to USA Today's national college strength coach salary database, Marotti's salary (after applicable raises) was $613,000 last season, good for third in the country behind Craig Fitzgerald of Tennessee ($625,000) and Chris Doyle of Iowa ($725,000).

A longtime confidant of Meyer, Marotti replaced Eric Licther, whose title was director of football performance.

“The good thing about Ohio State under (director of athletics Gene Smith)’s leadership is that the infrastructure is solid top to bottom,” Meyer said in December when announcing he would retire and be replaced by Day. “It’s arguably the best I’ve ever been around. And that’s talking about the academic, Coach Mick and his charges in the sports performance team, player welfare, our training staff, et cetera, et cetera.”

Marotti, an Ambridge, Pa., native received a master’s degree from Ohio State in 1988 and served as a graduate assistant strength coach in ’87 and ’88 when Meyer was also an OSU GA.

He has also worked at West Virginia, Cincinnati, Notre Dame and Florida.

Marotti was named American Football Monthly’s Football Bowl Subdivision Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year in 2016.