South Alabama Head Coach Major Applewhite’s Salary, Career Record, Age & Resume

Major Applewhite’s tenure as South Alabama’s head coach has been up and down.

The Jaguars were 7-6 overall with a 4-4 mark in the Sun Belt in 2023 and ended the season with the first bowl win in program history with a victory in the 68 Ventures Bowl.

But in 2025, USA went 4-8 overall. Applewhite is aiming to lead the Jaguars back to a bowl game in 2026.

Here’s more about Applewhite and his resume:

What’s South Alabama Head Coach Major Applewhite’s Salary?

Applewhite made $857,000 in total pay in 2025, according to USA Today.

Major Applewhite’s Coaching History

What’s South Alabama Head Coach Major Applewhite’s Record?

Applewhite is 26-25 in the FBS as a head coach with a 1-3 mark in bowl games. He went 15-11 in three years at Houston.

How Old Is South Alabama Head Coach Major Applewhite?

Applewhite is 47 years old.

South Alabama Head Coach Major Applewhite’s Background

Applewhite has been with the Jaguars for five seasons. 

In his first season at South Alabama, he coached eventual NFL wide receiver Jalen Tolbert, who was the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year as he totaled 1,474 yards and eight touchdowns on 82 receptions.

Applewhite was the head coach at Houston from 2017-18 after two years as an assistant there from 2015-16. He began his coaching career at Texas, where he was the Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year in 1998 and the conference’s Co-Offensive Player of the Year in 1999. He was a graduate assistant with the Longhorns from 2003-04.

After that, he was an assistant at Syracuse (2005), an offensive coordinator at Rice (2006), and an offensive coordinator at Alabama (2007). He was the assistant head coach at Texas from 2008-10 and then was a co-offensive coordinator there from 2011-13.