Dan Mullen's contract reportedly at risk following UNLV AD's latest statement

The UNLV Rebels are reportedly unable to pay their coach's high salary. On Wednesday, an article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal claimed that last week, athletic director Erick Harper told the university's Board of Regents that the athletic program currently only has money to cover two years of Dan Mullen's five-year contract.

NCAA Football: Florida at Missouri - Source: Imagn

Harper also told the regents that the school is $26 to $31 million in debt. According to the report, regent Joseph Arrasca asked Harper the following about Mullen's contract:

“Because you have $3.5 million for five years … you’re running nearly $30 million in the red. What is the plan to pay the coach, and how is it going to get done?”

To this, Erick Harper replied:

“We have the funds to pay the coach over the next two years. We have been working with our donors to assist with philanthropic dollars. We have one that has already paid their commitment, and that money is in an unrestricted line, and that will be utilized in the future to help with the salaries.”

Harper also said the school would change its ticket pricing strategy for the following season, looking to increase the price of single-game tickets, suite rentals and VIP tickets to raise more revenue. To this, Arrasca replied:

“Impressive numbers, but fans are fickle. One bad season, those numbers can plummet.”

While Arrasca finds the strategy interesting, it seems he doesn't believe it is risk-free due to the volatility inherent in sports.

UNLV Rebels 2024 season recap

In 2024, the Rebels had a great season, finishing with an 11-3 overall record and a No. 23 finish in the AP Poll. While they lost the Mountain West championship game to Boise State, they did win the LA Bowl against California. They were also briefly in the College Football Playoff picture, but the loss to Boise State in the championship game put that to rest.

2024 was former coach Barry Odom's second season in charge of the school. The success was so great that he rode it into a Big Ten job with the Purdue Boilermakers.

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In Odom's place, the school hired former Mississippi State and Florida coach Dan Mullen. Mullen was the SEC Coach of the Year in 2014 when his Mississippi State Bulldogs finished 10-3 and 11th in the AP Poll.

However, they fell in the Orange Bowl to Georgia Tech. The Bulldogs, led by Dak Prescott, reached the top spot in the AP Poll for the first time in program history and remained there until a mid-November defeat to Nick Saban's Alabama.