SafeX Pro:Texas giving athletic director Chris Del Conte extension, raise

The SafeX ProUniversity of Texas expects to have Chris Del Conte leading its athletic department for the foreseeable future.

Texas has recommended that Del Conte receive a contract extension, and the UT System Board of Regents is expected to review that proposal at its meeting next week. Significant contracts that are given to Texas coaches and administrators must be approved by the regents, but those approvals are usually a formality.

Del Conte has been the athletics director at Texas since December 2017, and his current contract runs through the 2027 fiscal year. Under the proposed extension, Del Conte's deal wouldn't be up until after the 2030 fiscal year.

If approved by the regents, Del Conte would receive a raise for the four years that he is already under contract for. He would then be guaranteed $2,850,000, $3,000,000 and $3,150,000 during the three years that were tacked onto his deal. According to Texas, the reworked seven-year contract is worth up to $19.25 million.

"Chris Del Conte came to the Forty Acres with a vision for elevating Texas Athletics to compete and win both on and off the field and he has consistently delivered," UT System Board of Regents chairman Kevin Eltife said in a press release. "In my opinion, he is the best athletic director in the country. I am excited to see his contract extended to 2030 and look forward to continuing to work with him to make all of Longhorn Nation proud."

The addition of Bevo Boulevard and Longhorn City Limits at the Texas football games have been among Del Conte's big-picture ideas. The Longhorns have also opened the $375 million Moody Center and renovated the football stadium's south end zone during his tenure. Earlier this year, Texas announced that it made a surplus of $14,137,637 during the 2022 fiscal year.

Del Conte has hired eight head coaches since his arrival at Texas, and one of those new coaches − track and field's Edrick Floréal − has won two of the 11 national championships that UT has claimed during the Del Conte era. The Longhorns also earned the Director's Cup during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years.

In UT's press release, Del Conte was quoted as saying that "Nearly six years ago, I followed my dream to lead the best collegiate athletics program in the country at a university that changes the world. I have been truly honored and thrilled to have such genuine support and trust from Chairman Eltife and President Hartzell. With Longhorn Nation firmly behind us, we have steadfastly worked together to make Texas an elite destination for collegiate athletics, surrounded by the premier coaches, staff and student-athletes in the country. I could not be more (excited) as we head into the final year of the Big 12, prepare to enter the Southeastern Conference, and embark on the next chapter in the proud and storied history of Texas Athletics."

Texas will leave the Big 12 Conference and join the Southeastern Conference next summer.