Monday morning I saw this tweet from media consultant @JWMediaDC. It was the first indication that the ACC was taking a hard look at the the Pac-12’s remaining schools.
The Pac 4 will talk with the ACC have talks about a merger. The ACC legal team feels that the additions @StanfordFball @calfootball @OregonState @WSUCougarFB could open the door for a better TV deal w/ ESPN keeping @FSUFootball & @ClemsonFB happy. It would bring @DukeMBB @UNC…
— Jim Williams (@JWMediaDC) August 7, 2023
Later in the day, ESPN said the ACC AD’s and Presidents will be discussing adding Stanford and California in earnest.
The latest from @PeteThamel – ACC having exploratory calls on Cal/Stanford. FWIW the ACC has been having conversations about Pac-12 schools for about a year. Presidents did not seem thrilled with the idea in earlier convos. Perhaps calculus has changed. https://t.co/xi7mJyADWH
— Andrea Adelson (@aadelsonESPN) August 7, 2023
Critics of these potential additions say it doesn’t add football value, doesn’t significantly close the revenue gap with the Big 10/SEC, and is a logistical nightmare. I agree with every single criticism but guess what they don’t matter because the ACC has to stop thinking of expansion 1990s, and 2000s and start thinking of expansion 2020s.
Please tell me how Arizona, Arizona State, or Colorado added football value to the Big 12? Colorado may have the worst athletics in the Pac 12. Did they close the revenue gap with the Big 10 or SEC? Nope. When USC and UCLA were added to the Big 10 did anyone care about the logistical nightmare it would cause? No. Did Missouri, Rutgers, or Maryland enhance the football of the SEC or the Big 10? Did Oregon and Washington raise the value of the current Big 10 deal? It did not.
Every single move was perceived as an aggressive move by the Big 12, Big 10, and SEC were considered long-term plays.
It’s about 2 things now. It is about survival and money. It’s the ugly truth, but that’s the way it is.
The additions of Stanford and Cal give the ACC 16 full-time member schools. If even up to 6 schools maybe even 8 eventually leave you still have a viable conference. It’s about sheer numbers, and it’s the strategy the Big 12 has taken, and it’s a smart one in 2023.
I don’t even have a problem if Oregon State and Washington State are looked at as well.
If numbers work out and the ACC schools are netting just an additional $3 Million per school, does it catch the SEC and Big 10? Obviously not, but you’ve just made up 10% of that $30 Million gap. Getting the gap to a manageable level say $15 Million, and now you’ve made up 20% of that gap. Closing the gap was always going to be incremental. There was never a $30 Million solution.
$3 Million here, $2 Million there, $4 Million, $1 Million, $2 Million, $2 Million, $1 Million = $15 Million.
You all are smart sports fans, have you ever seen a basketball team down 20 trying to make a comeback?
It is done a little bit at a time.
I don’t recall ever seeing a 21-point basket.
Will anything come of this? I don’t know and maybe the value returned isn’t worth it, but should it be considered?
You bet, and I can tell you now this happens only with ESPN’s backing.
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