Mohajir self evaluates with two years left on his contract

As UCF prepares for year three in the Big 12 conference, UCF VP and Director of Athletics Terry Mohajir is excited about what the Knights have accomplished, but knows there is still work to be done. “We’re at halftime, and we need to make some halftime adjustments,” said Mohajir in a wide-ranging interview with the Sons of UCF.

Whatever those adjustments might be, it looks like Mohajir will be staying around UCF for at least the next two years to see them through. Per a summary furnished to the Sons of UCF by UCF Sports Information, in November of 2022 Mohajir agreed to an extension of his original contract that will keep him at UCF until June 30, 2027.

Mohajir’s deal includes the following details:

• Contract duration is July 2022 through June 30, 2027
• Mohajir’s compensation schedule: $875,000 in 2022, $925,000 in 2023, $975,000 in 2024, $1,000,000 in 2025, and $1,000,000 in 2026
• Mohajir is also eligible for performance bonuses, capped at $300,000 a year

Mohajir took over the AD role at UCF in February 2021 having spent the previous eight years as Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics at Arkansas State. Just seven months into his tenure, Mohajir was in the AD chair when UCF accepted an invitation into the Big 12 Conference, an undoubted high-water mark for the school.

However, the transition hasn’t been especially easy for the Knights. “I would say that we are behind in facilities and some of the history and the donors and all that kind of stuff. I mean resources are important when it comes to staffing and keeping staff and retaining staff. And I feel like I wouldn’t say poor, but I would say we’re still not where the rest of the league is,” said Mohajir.

The 2025-26 academic year brings a bit of financial relief, as UCF is slated to receive a full share of the Big 12 TV revenue. “When I got here, we were a $59 million budget and you know, with now becoming full share members this year in the Big 12, it’s a $29 million lift. So that’s the difference of being [in the] American to the Big 12. Full share is $29 million. So, you look through the math, there’s a lot of great work our staff and has done on generating new revenues,” said Mohajir.

Mohajir also knows that results on the field will play a big role in creating revenue and becoming more competitive in the conference. The struggles in football have been most amplified under Mohajir, highlighted by the less than stellar tenure of previous head coach Gus Malzahn, who resigned after the 2024 season to take the offensive coordinator job at Florida State. Mohajir’s hire of Scott Frost creates a fresh start for the football program, and while it may have galvanized the fan base initially, there are still many challenges abound in turning the Knights into a consistent program in the Big 12.

It is Mohajir’s belief that for UCF to have success in the field of play, his coaches have to employ a specific philosophy, “most important thing is still evaluation and development. Those are the two most important things. We got to have coaches that know how to develop talent, but you got to evaluate them first. And so those are still huge message points that I’m talking to my coaches about,”

Despite these challenges, Mohajir is still bullish on the future for UCF, “I feel good for UCF. We got younger donors, and people are coming of age. We got great donors, we got great fans. But you know there’s only five schools in the power conferences that didn’t start their athletic departments in the 1800s and we’re the young, and we’re the youngest by I think 35 years, so you know what we’ll get there. The great news is we got 400,000 living alumni. 200,000 live in this market right here, that’s fantastic, so we’ll take advantage and we’ll continue to grow,”