(AP photo)

By Tyler Barto
Twitter: @Tyler_Barto
tbarto@trentonian.com

Kyle Flood got the contract extension he publicly downplayed but likely had hoped for.

Rutgers' third-year coach received a two-year extension through 2019 on Thursday, upping his annual salary and buyout.

Flood will still earn the same base pay through the end of the calendar year, when it will increase to $1.25 million for 2015. None of the other coaches in the Big Ten earn less than $1 million annually.

Breaking down each year — 2015: $1.25M, 2016: $1.35M, 2017: $1.46M, 2018: $1.55M.

By the end of Flood's deal, in 2019, he will make a total of $3.4 million, provided he is not bought out at $1.4 million, which doubles from his original contract.

He hired arguably college football's most important agent, Jimmy Sexton, in the offseason to handle his bidding. 

The timing couldn't be any more obvious. Rutgers hosts Penn State on Saturday in its Big Ten opener with dozens of high-profile recruits in attendance.

Flood can tell them he isn't going anywhere.