UND football coach Bubba Schweigert will enter the Missouri Valley Football Conference with a little more job security.
Schweigert was awarded a four-year contract extension, announced Monday, that would keep him in Grand Forks through the 2023 season.
Schweigert's new deal will start at $215,000 and escalate to $245,000.
"We are only one of 25 FCS programs in the country that have qualified for the playoff field twice during the past four seasons, and with us now heading to the most difficult conference in the country, having stability at the helm was incredibly important.,” said UND athletic director Bill Chaves. “I look forward to working with Bubba (Schweigert) in all aspects of the program moving forward.”
Originally hired as head coach in 2014 by athletic director Brian Faison, Schweigert last signed a contract extension in 2016 which locked him up through the 2021 season.
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Schweigert's 2016 contract extension started at a $185,000 base salary and was expected to rise to $215,000 in 2020.
UND is 37-32 in Schweigert's six seasons as head coach, advancing to the FCS playoffs twice (2016 and 2019). The Fighting Hawks, who are 0-2 in the FCS playoffs, lost to Richmond in Grand Forks in 2016 and at Nicholls State in Louisiana in 2019.
In 2016, UND went undefeated in Big Sky Conference play and earned a share of the Big Sky title. That year, Schweigert was named the Big Sky Coach of the Year.
UND, which has played a Big Sky Conference schedule the past two seasons but was technically an independent, will transition into a full Missouri Valley Football Conference schedule in 2020.
The Fighting Hawks open the 2020 season Sept. 3 at home against Valparaiso.
Schweigert, 57, is a Zeeland, N.D., native and Jamestown College graduate. Schweigert's career has included stints as defensive coordinator at UND and Southern Illinois, as well as head coach at Minnesota Duluth.
