On the surface, making the move to Miami just didn't make a whole lot of sense. There, he'd be expected to annually contend for a national championship, something he has said time and again doesn't drive him. There, he'd have to raise his charm quotient significantly just to compete with Florida and Florida State for the nation's best talent. Here, he still pacifies the locals with a trip to the Sun Bowl. There, a trip to El Paso, Texas, in late December would get him crucified or, more likely, fired.
Football is the undisputed rainmaker, and it can ill afford to have that train fall off the track.
And the only way that will happen is if the team keeps winning so the deep-pockets set will keep giving. And the only way they could reasonably ensure that would keep happening was to keep Alvarez, no matter what the cost. To lose Alvarez at this stage would have put this program in serious peril. The list of possible replacements was both shallow and uninspiring. A possible top-10 recruiting class could have very well unraveled.