usually high roller donors fund a lot of the buyouts. Because in many cases the high rollers demand the guy get fired. Doesn't matter if the AD or chancellor want to keep the guy, if the high rollers want him gone, he's gone. Auburn has a banker who is their big donor. Rumor has it Amato was axed partly for not kissing up enough to big donors. He did not even want them at practices at first. In other words if your name is on a college building you pretty much can get a guy fired after just 1 bad year . That's why ECU fired Steve Logan, he did not like kissing butts of donors and had a down year .
Tenn big donor is the guy Haslam who owns the Browns. If he wants a guy out , that's all that matters. And yes his name is on a building and the business school is named for him. And his brother was Tenn governor for 8 years