With winning comes outside attraction, and Michigan is hoping to fend off Dusty May’s suitors.

After leading Florida Atlantic to the 2023 Final Four and a 60-13 record in his last two seasons, May made the jump to Michigan and has had immediate success. The Wolverines are 18-5 overall and 10-2 in Big Ten play, and a win over No. 7 Purdue on Tuesday would move them into first place in the conference standings.

That’s made May a popular name on the college basketball coaching carousel for a third straight season. And according to reports Monday by On3, Michigan is working on keeping May in Ann Arbor with a new contract. It’s a logical move, assuming May will have other schools calling him with offers. 

May’s current contract was obtained by Hoosiers On SI from the University of Michigan via a public records request. It runs from March 2024 thru April 2029, and he is paid $3.625 million for the 2024-25 season in base salary. If May decided to leave Michigan after the 2024-25 season, his buyout would be $5,000,000 plus a $1,513,000 signing bonus.

That buyout likely wouldn’t be enough to prevent Indiana from going after May. It’s also important to remember that May signed a 10-year extension with Florida Atlantic after the 2023 Final Four and left a year later. 

Obviously, that didn’t limit Michigan’s ability to hire May. He could also negotiate a new contract at Michigan and still choose to leave. That’s why the most notable part of May’s potential new contract with Michigan would be the renegotiated buyout terms, and whether they’re enough to stop Indiana from pursuing him.

May’s alma mater hosted him over the weekend, and Indiana fans at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall gave May a warm reception and cheered for him during pregame lineup introductions. 

After defeating the Hoosiers 70-67, May said postgame he appreciated the ovation and that it felt good to be shown gratitude by Indiana fans, despite never having scored a point for the Hoosiers. May attended Eastern Greene High School in Bloomfield, Ind., was a student manager at Indiana from 1996-2000 under Bob Knight and served on Mike Davis’ staff from 2002-05. 

“First of all, it’s flattering when you have the path that I had and have – I’m still on that same path – it makes you feel good because what’s your competitive advantages as a student manager that transferred in as a marginal Division II player?” May said. “And you just think back, and it’s like, man, really all I did was show up with great energy and passion for this game and helping people every day. And because of that, I think people always saw something or believed in me, and then you get to this point.”

“But that stuff’s crazy. I love being at Michigan. I love our team. We’re fighting like crazy. That’s it. This place is my foundation, but I’m very, very happy at the University of Michigan. We were here to win a game, and mission accomplished.”

The two key factors here are whether May would want to leave Michigan after one season to coach Indiana, and how high May is on Indiana’s list of coaches. 

But if nothing else, reports that Michigan is working on a new contract for May suggest there is outside interest – the Miami, Florida State and Virginia jobs are open, too – and that Michigan has to up the ante to keep their rising star.