CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Clemson men’s basketball coach Brad Brownell is expected to be approved Thursday morning for a new contract that will give him a significant bump in pay.

TCI also confirmed Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables will have some changes approved in his contract as well when the Compensation Committee of the Clemson University Board of Trustees meets during its quarterly meetings.

The Clemson Insider has confirmed Brownell will receive a raise that will pay him market value for a Power 5 Conference head basketball coach. TCI learned Brownell should be in the ballpark of $2.3 to $2.5 million a year according to one source.

Brownell, who currently makes $1.9 million a year, has been in negotiations with Clemson for a new deal since the 2017-’18 season ended. Clemson hoped to get a deal done back in May, but the two parties hit a snag and had to cut through some red-tape to get the deal ironed out.

We learned the negotiations were good on both sides, but there were some issues neither Clemson nor Brownell’s representatives could prevent.

Regardless, a new multi-year contract will be done on Thursday which Clemson hopes will keep Brownell in Clemson for a long time.

Brownell is coming off a 25-10 season, which ended with the Tigers advancing to the Sweet 16 Round of the NCAA Tournament. Clemson finished tied for third in the ACC standings and advanced to the semifinals of the ACC Tournament.

It was considered Clemson’s best season in 21 years.

In February, Clemson made Brent Venables the second $2 million assistant coach in college football when the Board of Trustees approved his new three-year $6 million contract.

Though Venables base salary will remain the same, the Tigers defensive coach will now get retention bonuses for every year he elects to stay at Clemson.

Venables’ salary ranks second nationally among assistant coaches behind LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda, who reportedly makes $2.5 million.

“Obviously, Brent has done an incredible job as our defensive coordinator and the results on the field show it,” Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich said back in February. “There is (a level of commitment on both sides) and I think as we move ahead, we do the things that are necessary to make sure that he stays here.”

Aranda and Venables are the only two football assistant coaches in the country to make $2 million or more.

Venables’ contract already details that if Clemson is a Top-10 defense, Venables will receive a $50,000 bonus or a $100,000 for a Top-5 defense. In addition, he will receive a $50,000 bonus for a defense ranking in the Top-10 for total defense or $100,000 for a Top-5 total defense.

Those metrics will be determined by the Sports Source Analytics on the Monday following the ACC Championship Game.

Last year, Venables helped lead the Tigers to a third straight ACC Championship after fielding a defensive unit that led the conference in scoring, total, rushing and passing defense for the first time in the program’s history.

Clemson finished second in the nation in scoring defense, fourth in total defense and fourth in passing defense in 2017.

Venables can already make up to $315,000 in bonuses, according to the terms of his current contract.

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