If Florida State, Clemson, Virginia, North Carolina and Miami were to become available, that’s a real and major domino to fall in conference realignment. Most of the administrators who spoke to The Athletic in Scottsdale were much more interested in the possibility of ACC floodgates being open - and what that could mean for the Big Ten and SEC, which will both be at 16 members as of 2024 - than they were about discussing the current standoff between the Pac-12 and the Big 12 over schools such as Colorado and Arizona. There was much speculation about the future of the ACC and what it could mean for the rest of major college athletics. ![]() There were agents, search firm representatives and other industry leaders networking there as well as reporters. The Big 12 and Pac-12 formally met there, as they always do, and a good amount of Big Ten football coaches and athletic directors came out for a few days for the Fiesta Bowl-sponsored events (and vacation). What was perhaps most interesting was the amount of attention paid to the ACC at another set of spring meetings - those that took place earlier this month in Scottsdale, Ariz. “There’s a big difference between saying you want to do something like that and actually executing it,” one league source said. Staples: How would a school challenge a grant of rights? We asked a lawyer Some of the schools’ presidents are expected to be in Florida in person for their portion of the meetings others will video conference in. It’s about incremental change and moving toward a system that rewards on-field (or on-court) success, he said. The ACC source said his expectation for this week’s meetings was to “advance the ball on revenue distribution changes,” though he acknowledged it wouldn’t close the gap for schools like Clemson and Florida State compared to schools in the Big Ten and SEC. Is there a dollar figure that a school could pay to get its rights back? Even if it is exorbitant, it could be worth paying to get to a league that will bring in $30 million more per member annually. The GOR piece is important because the ACC would continue to own the broadcast rights of all of its teams’ home games, even if that team were to pay the exit fee and leave. “If it were simple, everybody would have done it already,” an ACC source pointed out. One industry source said he was told that seven ACC schools are interested in exploring ways to leave the ACC. Lawyers for a subset of schools have been thoroughly examining the document. ![]() ![]() What it would cost to try to get out of the ACC before that time is unclear the exit fee alone is $120 million and there is also the issue of breaking the ACC’s grant of rights, which has not been challenged to date and is presumed to be airtight by most. Could the ACC ever adopt an unequal revenue sharing model?ĪCC commissioner Jim Phillips has acknowledged the league’s position relative to the SEC and the Big Ten and has hired outside help to find new revenue streams for a conference locked in to its media rights deal through 2036.
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