My impression was that Holmoe had baked in language in the contracts that says that BYU could get out of those contracts if they were to join another conference.
That is a huge part of your argument, so I'd like to confirm. If it would cost $10M then it is a tough decision. If it does NOT, I disagree with your premise, the AAC isn't great but because the games will have conference ramifications and the depth of the conference is better than the dregs that BYU is forced to play I think it is a net gain. An OOC game against a strong team like Tennessee or USC is a bonus, but on par with an IN CONFERENCE game with rankings and bowl affiliations and conference champion ramifications on the line in November. Another way to think about it is that maybe the highs were higher with an independent schedule, (i.e. some big name teams like USC), but the lows are MUCH lower because you have to play New Mexico St. in November with zero on the line. I think the "making lemon out of lemonade" approach to Utah joining the Pac is to go to the AAC, schedule tough OOC games including all P5 teams (Utah, USC, Washington) resulting in an awesome home schedule, and then owning the AAC like BYU did with the WAC. Being relevant 8 out of 10 years in the AAC is better than Utah if they are mid to bottom tier Pac 12 team who is fighting for bowl eligibility.