The South Carolina football team hired former New York Giants offensive assistant coach, Jody Wright, who will join the team next season as tight ends coach.
Wright will fill the vacancy on the coaching staff that was created when former Gamecock tight ends coach Erik Kimrey left to take a head coaching position at the high school level.
Wright's two-year, $750,000 contract was approved in a Board of Trustees meeting Friday.
The deal comes with a $25,000 SEC championship appearance incentive and $50,000 for a win. There are also bowl and college football playoff game incentives in Wright's contract. If the Gamecocks win a national championship, Wright will get an extra $65,000.
Wright has experience at both the professional and collegiate levels and has been involved with coaching since 2005 when he got his first job as a volunteer defensive assistant coach at Mississippi State.
There, Wright crossed paths with head coach Shane Beamer, who was serving as cornerbacks coach on Sylvester Croom’s staff at the time.
Wright spent six seasons of his career under Nick Saban at Alabama from 2010-2012 and 2015-17. He also served as assistant head coach at Alabama-Birmingham in 2014 and 2018 before jumping to the NFL.
Wright marks the second addition to the Gamecocks’ coaching staff this offseason, joining Sterling Lucas who was signed as the defensive backs coach in January.
Wright's stint as tight ends coach starts immediately and is effective until Dec. 31, 2023.
Six assistant coaches on Beamer's staff also all agreed to one-year contract extensions and salary increases.
Running backs coach Montario Hardesty, defensive line coach Jimmy Lindsay, and strength and conditioning coach Luke Day will now make $300,000, $375,000 and $425,000 a year respectively. All three coaches contracts will now run through 2023.
Defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Clayton White recieved the largest salary increase of $200,000, from $900,000 a year to $1.1 million with a contract extension through 2024.
Wide receiver coach Justin Stepp's contract now runs through 2023 with a pay increase to $475,000 in 2022 and another increase in 2023 to $525,000. While special teams coordinator and associate head coach Pete Lembo's $450,000 yearly salary has increased by $15,000 to bring it up to $465,000 a year.