There is a solution to playing 9 ACC conference games.

I keep reading from some ACC fans the difficulty if the ACC goes to 9 conference games. We need our 7 home games, we need to play power 5 opponents – like this was rocket science. What if I said you can play 9 conference games, and only 1 lose home game every 5 years. If ESPN  did ask for ACC content for an ACC Network, you’re telling me Clemson and FSU can’t afford losing 1 home every 5 years. I don’t believe you, especially if an ACC Network is in place. This took me about 20 minutes to come up with, so I’m sure a team of schedule makers working several days can finalize it.

I even included Notre Dame.

Here’s how it will work. You play 8 home games – There are SEC teams all the time that have 8 home games.

Year 1 –  8 Home Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival, 2 Cupcakes ) / 4 Road games ( 4 ACC )

Year 2 – 6 Home Games (4 ACC, 1 Cupcake, 1 Power 5 Opponent ) / 6 Road Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival )

Year 3 – 7 Home Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival, 1 Cupcake ) / 5 Road Games ( 4 ACC, 1 Power 5 Opponent )

Year 4 – 6 Home Games (4 ACC, Notre Dame, 1 Cupcake ) / 6 Road Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival )

Year 5 – 8 Home Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival, 2 Cupcakes ) / 4 Road games ( 4 ACC )

Year 6 – 6 Home Games (4 ACC, 2 Cupcakes ) / 6 Road Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival )

Year 7 – 7 Home Games ( 5 ACC, In-State Rival, 2 Cupcakes ) / 5 Road Games ( 4 ACC, Notre Dame )

In a 7 year period Clemson, FSU, Georgia Tech, and Louisville have lost exactly ONE HOME GAME! You still play Notre Dame twice, and have a home and home with another power 5 team. If you throw in a neutral site game, you lose just TWO HOMES GAMES, in 7 years.

Is it a little more rigid than the 8 game conference schedule? There’s no question there is a less flexibility, but the effect is not nearly as bad as some have made it out to be. To schedule Notre Dame is not set in stone either. Even now some schools play Notre Dame on the road 2 games in a row, or at home 2 years in a row.

What about the 3 out of 7 years that you wouldn’t have a 2nd Power 5 opponent? Clemson has managed to usually have a 2nd power 5 opponent in recent years, but FSU didn’t have a 2nd Power 5 opponent in 2012, 2013 or 2015. So let’s not act like this is impossible to work out.

There can be variations of this, but basically squeeze 8 home dates in most of the years you only have 4 ACC road games. It really isn’t that complicated.

Rest easy fans who are against this though – Recently the Georgia Tech AD Mike Bobinksi said this in an AJC Article. 

Bobinski said that the league placing Florida State and Clemson into the College Football Playoff in the first two years is one significant reason to keep things as they are.

“What we’re doing at this point in time isn’t terribly broken,” he said. “Do we really want to rush to change something that’s performing reasonably well at this point in time?”

So we may not see the 9 game conference schedule anytime soon, but we know it can be done.

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