Nevada men's basketball coach Steve Alford is due a $250,000 bonus today

Steve Alford is due a $250,000 bonus today for remaining in the position of Nevada men's basketball coach.

That is the second of two retention bonuses in Alford's contract, which was signed on April 11, 2019. Alford also got a $250,000 retention bonus for remaining employed by Nevada on April 1, 2022.

Those retention bonuses were part of a record-breaking 10-year contract that included $11.6 million in guaranteed money, which raises to $12.125 million if you include the retention bonuses and an initial signing bonus of $25,000.

Alford was the Mountain West's third-highest-paid basketball coach last season, making a school record $1.3 million, slotting after San Diego State's Brian Dutcher ($2.4 million) and Colorado State's Niko Medved ($1.7 million). Alford has four years remaining on his deal with annual $50,000 raises that will top out at $1.5 million in 2028-29.

Alford will rank third in salary among MW men's basketball coaches next season behind Dutcher and Utah State's Jerrod Calhoun, who got an extension this offseason that will pay him $1.85 million next season. Alford is entering his seventh season at Nevada and has $5.7 million left on his contract. Thus far, Alford has earned $6.445 million over his first six seasons with the Wolf Pack, including salary, retention bonuses and $20,000 in bonuses for making two NCAA tournaments.

The Wolf Pack is coming off a season in which it went 17-16 overall and 8-12 in the MW, finishing seventh in the conference after being picked third in the preseason poll. It lost to Colorado State in the MW Tournament quarterfinal before turning down a postseason invitation.

Nevada is 113-75 in six seasons under Alford, including 61-48 in the MW with a best finish of second in the league in 2020 and 2024. The Wolf Pack is still looking for its first MW championship under Alford, who earlier this season became the second coach in NCAA history to win at least 100 games at four Division I schools. Alford led Nevada to back-to-back NCAA tournaments in 2023 (a First Four loss to Arizona State) and 2024 (a first-round loss to Dayton).

Prior to Alford's contract, Nevada's biggest deal for a head coach was the five-year, $5 million extension signed by basketball's Eric Musselman after the 2016-17 season.