I agree with the original post. The big question is why was he looking for an out in the first place.
My guess is he got into it with BB about the facilities. Either that, or thought that he wouldn't be able to manage further improvement next season (ie, he thought his stock might drop).
I feel pretty confident that BB had had enough of the tail wagging the dog. He was probably willing to tolerate him being difficult, but couldn't afford for it to be public. BB has an image to maintain with the other Aggie coaches and staff as well as potential coaches.
If Gillispie was talking with the piggies, BB might have used the opportunity to call him out. When Gillispie knew the gig was up, he got out while the getting was good.
What I don't understand is why Gillispie lost his nerve. He's been cool as a cucumber since before he got here, but he left without meeting his players, didn't have anything to say about A&M at his UK press conference. He knows the game, and it just amazes me that he wouldn't take the time or make the effort to do it right.
I'm guessing that BB held off construction on the new facility to let Gillispie know who was in charge. I think that pissed Billy off and he lost his cool as time went on. If Billy had honored the contract that was supposedly agreed to in principle, ground would have been broken last Monday after a nice friendly press conference announcing Gillispie was staying.
In the end, I think BB gambled and won. Gillispie chose to leave rather than mend fences or admit he had overstepped his bounds. He seems to think that as long as he's winning, nothing else matters and he should get what he wants when he wants it. He should have talked more with Shelby; he would have learned different.
Now he's at a place where he'll never be as big as the history of the program. He'll learn to like it, or move on.
