Steve Berkowitz

USA TODAY Sports

Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany has at least $20 million in bonuses coming in the future, but in the present, Pac-12 Conference Commissioner Larry Scott continues to lead current conference CEO compensation by a considerable margin.

Scott was credited with nearly $4.2 million in total compensation for the 2015 calendar year, according to the Pac-12’s new federal income tax return.

The document — which the conference provided in response to a request from USA TODAY Sports — shows that Scott received $2.65 million in base compensation, a $1.3 million bonus and just over $155,000 in other reportable compensation.

Scott also continued to have the benefit of a nearly $1.9 million loan as of the end of the conference’s fiscal year June 30, 2016. (Under IRS rules, a non-profit organization must report its revenue and expense data based on its fiscal year, but it must report annual compensation data based on the calendar year completed during its fiscal year.)

From 2010 through 2015, Scott has been credited with a total of just over $20 million in compensation, including nearly $6.4 million in bonuses.

His base pay for 2015 represented a $100,000 increase over what was reported for him in 2014, and his bonus increased by $50,000.

Jim Delany, Big Ten commissioner, earns $20 million bonus

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Big 12 sees increase in revenue, but still lags behind SEC

Scott’s contract had been scheduled expire in 2018, but in March, the Pac-12 announced that its presidents and chancellors had extended his agreement through June 2022.

USA TODAY Sports, citing the Big Ten’s new tax return, reported Friday that Delany had been credited with a total of nearly $2.4 million in 2015 and that in July 2015, he “became fully eligible for future bonus payments pursuant to his employment contract.”

As a result, the Big Ten document said, the conference had to record the full amount of those future payments as an expense and a liability on the return covering its 2016 fiscal year, which ran from July 1 through June 30. A comparison of the Big Ten’s new expense and liability amounts to those on prior years’ returns revealed the $20 million bonus estimate.

In a statement, University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler — who currently chairs the Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors — cited a variety of factors for Delany’s pay, including that it is “market-competitive” and “based on independent third-party analysis.”

The Big 12 has reported Commissioner Bob Bowlsby with nearly $2.7 million in total compensation for 2015. The Southeastern Conference reported Greg Sankey with $1.25 million for a 2015 in which he continued serving as chief operating officer for five months before succeeding the retiring Mike Slive. The Atlantic Coast Conference reported John Swofford with nearly $2.7 million in 2014, the last year for which that figure is available.

While Scott has helped transform the Pac-12 financially, it continues to lag behind those from the Southeastern and Big Ten conferences in terms of per-school revenue distribution.

The Pac-12’s new return showed it with $488 million in total revenue in fiscal 2016. That’s slightly higher than the Big Ten’s revenue for the same period and represents an amount that is more than four times what the Pac-12 generated in fiscal 2011.

As a result, the Pac-12 distributed about $28.7 million to each of its 12 schools in fiscal 2016.

Primarily because of the conference-owned Pac-12 Networks and other business ventures under Pac-12 Enterprises, however, the Pac-12 is carrying a much greater expense load than other Power Five conferences. Just in terms of compensation, the conference’s new tax return showed seven executives other than Scott with total compensation of more than $500,000. Pac-12 Networks president Lydia Murphy-Stephans was credited with nearly $1.3 million, and Pac-12 Networks executive vice president for integrated sponsorships and sales Neil Davis was credited with just over $675,000.

The Big Ten — on total revenue of just over $483 million — distributed about $34.8 million for each of its longest-standing 11 members in 2016. Nebraska, which joined in 2011, and Maryland and Rutgers, which each joined in 2014, all continued to receive smaller amounts.

The SEC, which reported $639 million in revenue for 2016, sent distributions to its 14 members that ranged from $41.9 million to $39.1 million.

The Big 12, with 10 schools and $313 million in revenue, reported distributions that ranged from $28.9 million to just over $28 million.