He is getting a raise and probably a easier work schedule. Can't say as I blame him. However, it may be that CNS is tough to work for. People have wives and kids and sometimes no matter how much you win or how much money you make, too much time away from home can take a toll.
I was watching that ESPN interview, the one when he first came here, and CNS said that when he coached his first bowl at LSU, he practiced the team for the whole month and by the time they got to the bowl they were worn out and they lost. He learned give them time off until about 2 weeks before the game and then start practicing them. So he knows that fatigue can take its toll on a team. I honestly think that the SEC Championship game took too much out of the team to expect them to get up for Utah. Lets face it, the only bowl that really means anything is the BCS Championship game anyway....
I wonder something, how is it to coach for Stoops? For Urban Myer? Pete Carroll? What about Coach Bryant? Did they too keep really demanding schedules? It takes a special person to work 24/7 and not get burnt out.
Lets just let CNS worry about this stuff, he may have had someone better in mind for the job and Thompson saw the writing on the wall. I mean of all the years that Coach Bryant was at Bama, how many assistants did he go through? Who do you remember besides Gene Stallings and Pat Dye?