When word began to trickle out in November that North Carolina was going to hire a big-name coach to lead its football program, and former Miami/NFL coach Butch Davis then signed on with the Tar Heels, eyebrows were raised nationally at the revelation that Davis would be making "Roy-type money" in Chapel Hill.

The idea that UNC, home to one of the most famous basketball programs in the nation, would pay its football leader a similar amount as it would to hoops guru Roy Williams was hard for many to believe. Media reports typically listed Williams' compensation at about $1.6 million per year, then reported Davis' deal as an average of more than $1.8 million, but nobody made a direct, year-by-year comparison.

UNC athletic director Dick Baddour recently declined to comment on the status of (or even the existence of) any on-going contract discussions with Williams, who's working under the original, eight-year deal the university announced in October 2003. That contract extends through the 2010-11 season.

At the time of Davis' hiring, Williams said he wasn't at all concerned about his compensation package.

"I’m comfortable with it," Williams said. "I worked under the same contract since 1990 until I left Kansas in (2003). I’ve got no problem with it the way it is. I’m happy as long as I’ve got enough money to buy golf balls."

"I'm willing to guarantee that we'll take care of that (golf balls request)," Baddour said, laughing. "In our eyes, Roy Williams is the best coach in the country. I also believe we have to meet the market standard for him. That's a fair thing to do."

So, does Davis really make more money than Roy? Not yet. The new guy did come close, however.

For example, Davis will make more in base compensation in 2007 (about $1.7 million) than Williams made in base compensation in 2004-05 (about $1.6 million). Incentives and retention bonuses complicate the picture, but the gap — even this year — isn't an enormous one. Before incentives, Williams is scheduled to make about $2 million in 2006-07.

Interestingly, because of the current structure of both coaches' contracts, Davis actually is scheduled to make more money than Williams beginning in 2008-09. Under the terms of his existing deal, Williams' base compensation is scheduled to fall from about $2.5 million in 2007-08 to about $1.1 million in 2008-09, although nobody expects that dramatic drop to actually occur. Sources said additional money from Nike, beyond the $500,000 per year he brought with him from Kansas, will be one important factor in that regard.

"From a philosophical standpoint," Baddour said, "it has never been our intention that the overall value of the contract would go backward as we move forward."

When UNC hired Williams in 2003, school officials spoke of their desire to match the basic terms of his Kansas contract. Because the coach's deal with the Jayhawks had five years remaining on it at the time, the first five years — and only the first five years — of his contract with the Tar Heels were designed to reflect the Kansas deal. That included UNC assuming responsibility for a deferred income plan totaling $3,867,078, an amount that's being paid over a five-year period via private money from 40-50 boosters.

Williams will receive the final payment from the annuity in 2008. What happens after that remains up for discussion.

Roy Williams Scheduled Compensation (Before Incentives):

2003-04 — about $1.45 million (including $357,000 from annuity)
2004-05 — about $1.6 million (including $481,000 from annuity)
2005-06 — about $1.9 million (including $780,000 from annuity)
2006-07 — about $2 million (including $879,000 from annuity)
2007-08 — about $2.5 million (including $1.4 million from annuity)
2008-09* — about $1.1 million, plus any additional Nike money (beyond original $500,000/year)
2009-10* — about $1.1 million, plus any additional Nike money (beyond original $500,000/year)
2010-11* — about $1.1 million, plus any additional Nike money (beyond original $500,000/year)
    * — expected to be renegotiated