It's very exciting to see the salaries that top women's college basketball coaches get these days. But, it's nice to remember (as a fan and as an optimistic young coach) that you're not going to walk in to a job like Pat's or CViv's.

Conisre this little bit of financial reality from Pennsylvania:

The following coaches were hired at Tuesday’s meeting: Dennis Landis, JV girls basketball, at a salary of $3,851; Bill Turbitt, 8th-grade girls basketball, $2,572.80; Matt Raup, 7th-grade girls basketball, $2,572.80; Shawn Kuhns, middle-school football, $2,572.80; Mike Bergey, varsity football, $4,209.12; Wendell Sweigard, football, $1,052.28; and Scott Kendall, cross country, $1,836.80.

The money can't begin to match the hours expected:

Scott DeJong's daily schedule is not an unusual one. A coach for 17 years at Ankeny High School (Iowa), DeJong teaches six business classes a day and also serves as co-chair of the Iowa Girls' Coaches Association. With several state titles to his credit, DeJong admits that, during the regular season, "it's not uncommon for me to stay up until 2 or 3 in the morning, watch the game we just played, watch the team we're going to play, prepare a practice, then go to work the next morning."

Coaching at the high school level (and below) is a labor of love -- and it's a labor that is essential to building the game as a whole. If you're interested, look here to learn about the changes in the profession or here to learn about the tensions between high school and AAU coaches.