CINCINNATI — The University of Cincinnati has extended the contract of men’s basketball coach Wes Miller. Miller, 39, is in his second season at Cincinnati. The extension runs through the 2028-29 season, adding two years to the original deal Miller signed in April 2021. Here’s what you need to know:
- The extension includes a significant financial increase, upping Miller’s average annual salary from $1.31 million under the original contract to an average annual salary of $2.95 million.
- The deal was approved by Cincinnati’s Board of Trustees on Wednesday morning during a previously scheduled meeting.
- Miller’s new annual average salary under the extension would rank ninth among head coaches in the current Big 12 Conference — a league Cincinnati will join next season — and eighth compared to “future” Big 12 members (removing Texas and Oklahoma and adding Cincinnati, Houston, UCF and BYU).
This article has been updated with additional details on Miller’s contract extension according to a document obtained by The Athletic via public record request.
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According to a copy of the signed extension, Miller’s salary will start at $2.5 million for the rest of this season and increase to as high as $3.4 million for the 2028-29 season, including a $500,000 increase before the 2025-26 season.
Wes Miller extension salary increase
| Effective Date | Salary |
|---|---|
January 1, 2023 | $2.5 mil |
April 1, 2023 | $2.55 mil |
April 1, 2024 | $2.6 mil |
April 1, 2025 | $3.1 mil |
April 1, 2026 | $3.2 mil |
April 1, 2027 | $3.3 mil |
April 1, 2028 | $3.4 mil |
Miller’s extension also stipulates that he is “eligible to earn an additional $100,000 per year” for every season the Bearcats qualify for the NCAA Tournament, meaning Miller’s salary would increase by $100,000 for the season after Cincinnati reaches the tournament and then stay at that increased level moving forward — it is not simply a one-year bonus. So if the Bearcats reach the NCAA Tournament this March 2023, Miller’s salary would increase to $2.65 million for the 2023-24 season and continue to increase accordingly during the length of the contract, as well as each subsequent time Cincinnati reaches the tournament.
Miller also can earn annual performance bonuses, including $50,000 for a regular-season conference championship or co-championship and as much as $500,000 for winning a national championship.
Miller’s annual recruiting budget will increase by $150,000. There were no other staff or budgetary adjustments stipulated in the extension.
Here is the buyout structure if Miller is fired by the university without cause.
Wes Miller buyout if fired
| Termination by University | Buyout to Miller |
|---|---|
Before March 31, 2023 | $18.15 mil |
Before March 31, 2024 | $15.6 mil |
Before March 31, 2025 | $13 mil |
Before March 31, 2026 | $9.9 mil |
Before March 31, 2027 | $4.69 mil |
Before March 31, 2028 | $1 mil |
Before March 31, 2029 | $500k |
Here is the buyout structure if Miller terminates the contract and leaves the university.
Wes Miller buyout if he leaves UC
| Termination by Miller | Buyout to Cincinnati |
|---|---|
Before March 31, 2023 | $10 mil |
Before March 31, 2024 | $10 mil |
Before March 31, 2025 | $10 mil |
Before March 31, 2026 | $5 mil |
Before March 31, 2027 | $2.5 mil |
Before March 31, 2028 | $500k |
Before March 31, 2029 | $0 |
Backstory
Miller went 18-15 in his first year with the Bearcats last season, including 7-11 in the American Athletic Conference. Cincinnati is currently 6-4 in 2022-23 and has already signed a pair of four-star, top-55 recruits to the 2023 class in Jizzle James and Rayvon Griffith.
Miller spent 10 seasons as head coach at UNC Greensboro prior to UC, where he was the Spartans’ all-time winningest head coach with an overall record of 185-135, four Southern Conference regular-season championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances.
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Why Cincinnati extended Miller
Miller inherited a challenging situation when he was hired in April 2021, taking over in the wake of former coach John Brannen’s firing and just months before Cincinnati was officially invited to join the Big 12. Miller’s extension represents considerable investment from the university in its men’s basketball team as it transitions to a power conference, aiming to further stabilize the program and lock in someone the Bearcats believe is one of the most promising young coaches and recruiters in the country, sources familiar with the decision told The Athletic.
According to those same sources, the deal signals Cincinnati athletic director John Cunningham’s belief in Miller as the right coach to lead the Bearcats into the Big 12 and the department’s commitment to competing in the new league as soon as possible.
Top priorities for Miller
In a broader, long-term sense, it’s competing in the Big 12 and consistently getting the Bearcats back to the NCAA Tournament, which had become an annual occurrence under Mick Cronin. That will be a challenge, but this extension is a clear investment in Miller as the coach to return Cincinnati to national relevance.
In a more immediate sense, Miller’s top priority is restoring an identity — his identity — and a sense of stability within the program. He’s the third head coach in the last five seasons, with the lack of roster coherence and development to show for it. Undoing that degree of variability will require some time (and patience), particularly in the Big 12, but Cunningham and university stakeholders have demonstrated that they feel Miller’s philosophy and approach on and off the court are what the program needs to move forward. First Miller must re-establish that baseline for the Bearcats, then focus and expectations can shift back toward national relevance.
Required reading
(Photo: Dylan Buell / Getty Images)
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