5 coordinators who were grossly overpaid in 2016

The annual USA Today assistant coaches salary list was released on Wednesday, and, at first glance, there are a lot of coordinators massively under-performing on their salaries.

While nobody would fault these men for attaining the monstrous compensation they are currently being paid, the results from the 2016 campaign certainly did not justify those figures.

Here are seven coordinators, ranked by salary nationally, who were particularly disappointing:

1. John Chavis, Texas A&M DC ($1,558,000)

John Chavis came to Texas A&M from rival LSU prior to the 2015 season, which probably made the Tigers 54-39 beatdown this year at Kyle Field even sweeter. The Aggies had a hot start to the season, sitting at No. 4 in the first edition of the CFP rankings, but plummeted after that with losses in their last four SEC games. As the highest-paid assistant in the country, Texas A&M would probably like more return on their investment than the 91st-ranked total defense in the country.

6. Cam Cameron, former LSU OC ($1,200,000)

When Les Miles was fired as LSU's head coach after four games this season, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron went with him, but it's a move that should have been made long before this season. Since Cameron took the job in 2013, the Tigers offense has never been in the top-20 in the country. For a school that recruits the talent that LSU does, that is simply inexcusable.

Through four games this season, LSU was averaging just 21 points per game, and sat with a 2-2 record. After Cameron left, the Tigers averaged 32.4 points per contest, including five games with over 35 points.

8. Bob Shoop, Tennessee DC ($1,155,000)

Tennessee plucked Bob Shoop from Penn State prior to the season under the guise that he could take the talent-rich Volunteers to the SEC championship. Here's what Shoop was able to do with the defense in his first season at the helm compared to 2015:

As the eighth-highest paid assistant in the country, it's likely Tennessee was hoping to avoid the defense plummeting almost 50 spots in scoring defense, and ranking ahead of just 19 schools in the country in total defense.

9. Brian VanGorder, former Notre Dame DC ($1,106,156)

Brian VanGorder lasted just four games this season at Notre Dame, with head coach Brian Kelly placing the blame for the Fighting Irish's struggles squarely on the defensive coordinator's shoulders. The Fighting Irish allowed 50, 36, and 38 points against Power 5 opponents under VanGorder's watch this season. After his dismissal, Notre Dame allowed an average of 20 points per contest.

15. Mike Stoops, Oklahoma DC ($900,000)

With his brother, the legendary Bob Stoops as his boss, there seems to be fewer coaches with stronger job security than Oklahoma defensive coordinator Mark Stoops. That being said, he probably tested that theory much more than he would have liked in 2016. Oklahoma repeated as Big 12 champions, but the high-powered offense dragged the under-performing defense to the title. Really, the only example needed that Stoops was massively overpaid as the 15th-highest assistant coach in the country was the defensive performance against Texas Tech.