by Mark Smith, Albuquerque Journal

The second-year UNM coach, who was on the hot seat at Iowa before taking the Lobo job in the spring of 2007, is sitting pretty at New Mexico until March 31, 2017. Last year, Alford received a three-year extension on top of his original six-year, $1 million a-year deal. This year, he earned another one-year extension without having to do a shred of negotiating. That's one of his perks - along with a $25,000 bonus - for winning a share of this season's league title. Alford's contract calls for an automatic one-year extension if the Lobos win either a regular-season title, a league tournament or make at least the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament.

The $25,000 league title bonus rolls into Alford's base salary next season, boosting that figure to $235,000. Krebs says the bonus money will remain as part of the base salary for the length of the contract, which now runs through March 2017. Alford's total package, which also includes $250,000 for promoting the program, $250,000 for radio and television obligations, $100,000 for apparel and shoe contracts, $65,000 for summer camps, $100,000 in deferred compensation paid into a special retirement account, two courtesy cars, 12 Lobo men's hoops season tickets and a country club membership is worth more than $1 million a year.

"We've taken the program in the right direction in a very short time," says Alford, who inherited a team that tied for the Mountain West Conference cellar in 2007. "Now these young kids (at UNM next season) have just got to do a good job of developing. So it's a big summer for these young kids."

In 2007-2008, Alford led New Mexico to a 24-9 mark and a third-place finish in the MWC at 11-5.

This season, the Lobos were 22-12 and tied Utah and Brigham Young for the Mountain West championship at 12-4.

New Mexico's NCAA tournament hopes were killed after it lost to Wyoming in its opening game of the Mountain West Conference tournament, and UNM had to settle for a berth in the NIT for the second straight year.

"Two years into it, we're very happy with the job coach Alford and his staff have done," says UNM athletics director Paul Krebs. "Happy by all measures; competitively, academically, community service of student-athletes and coaches, and community response to the team."

So, too, is Alford - who added to his kitty this season by hitting a number of incentives included in the contract, each worth $10,000. The ones he achieved are:

Snatching an NCAA berth ($20,000).

There are also huge bonuses for getting the Lobos to the Sweet 16 and beyond.

Alford says he's very appreciative of Krebs and UNM president David Schmidly for how they have handled the contract, and the direction they've provided in helping to turn the program around.

"They've been terrific," Alford says. "They were terrific in the hire, and how they set up the contract initially. I've been appreciative of everything that they've done with the incentives and stuff. And I would think that they're happy, because anytime they pay an incentive, that means that we've been good, we've had success.

"Our academic situation has taken a 360-degree turn and all three seniors graduate (this spring), and Ro (junior Roman Martinez) will graduate next year. So we've really made a lot of strides in the areas I was hired. I remember Dr. Schmidly saying, he wanted, academically, to do it the right way and wanted to win. So I think we've got it going the right direction, and it could not have been done without the support of the administration."

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