UCF and head football coach Gus Malzahn have agreed to a contract extension and a raise that will pay the former Auburn coach $5.5 million a year toward the end of the deal.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reports the contract extension is through at least the 2027 season.

“Sources: UCF and coach Gus Malzahn have agreed to a contract extension through the 2027 season. Malzahn agreed to terms early this summer and the school raised his salary to $4 million per year on July 1. The deal rises to $5.5 million annually in 2026 and 2027.”

Thamel also reports the move not only secures Malzahn but adjusts his pay to reflect the salaries in the Big 12.

“The raise and extension are part of UCF’s transition plan to the Big 12, which the school calls ‘Mission XII.’ The new deal puts him more in line with the Big 12, as he would have entered UCF’s first in the Big 12 as the lowest-paid Power 5 coach without the adjustment.”

On July 1, a pay bump went into effect taking Malzahn’s salary to $4 million annually.

According to USA TODAY’s database of college football coaches’ salaries, updated earlier this week, Malzahn was earning $2.3 million in base salary, the lowest reported figure for any Power Five program. That figure does not include the $21.45 million buyout he received from Auburn, which was half paid within 30 days of his December 2020 firing, and annual installments of approximately $2.68 million the following four years.

Malzahn, in his third season as the Knights’ coach is 3-2 on the season. UCF has won nine games in both 2021 and 2022 in his first two years.

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.