Let's be clear. Up to this point the total budget for coaches appears to be in the $10 to $11 million range including assistants. We aren't going to spend Jimbo Fisher/Nick Saban money while we are in buyout limbo.
My pure guess is a $10 million cap for all coaches going into a building program with a bit of wiggle room for "extraordinary hires". Gruden, Patterson, Peterson, and anybody else at $8 to $11 million a year were never a real option. If you look at the search through this lens, it makes more sense. We are going to get someone like Miles, Pruitt or Steele who we can bring in for around $5 million a year including buyout.