This is kind of out of left field, but I want to throw it out there just as a hypothetical. When Shaka Smart left VCU for UT, there was every indication that Rhoades was going to be going back there, but there was a furious renegotiation at our end to cut them off at the pass. I remember reading (maybe quoted on this board) comments from VCU supporters that something akin to "a suitcase full of Texas oil money on a private jet" to a coaches' meeting (Chicago, IIRC) and persuaded him to stay.

So... how much was that commitment? And for argument's sake, suppose it was comparable to what it would take to buy out another contract? If spending those funds comes down to a choice, which side of the Faustian bargain do you come down on? Try to keep a fantastically promising coach in a sport where an impact on a national scale can be made in a few years' time, when that coach could still jump ship in a couple of years? Or get rid of a boat anchor in a program that is a linchpin to moving to a conference that is closer to our peer group, but without any assurance that you can find someone who can resurrect it?

Tough call.