While I still believe the Pac12 will hold together and get their media rights deal done, until it’s complete the Pac12’s future is in question.
I think it is a near certainty the Big 12 picks up 2-4 Pac12 schools. The Big12 has made no secret of its desire to expand with the 4 corner Pac 12 schools, Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah.
Oregon and Washington may be headed to the Big 10, and Stanford, California, Oregon State, and Washington State will be left to pick up the pieces. Maybe the Big 10 gets Stanford and California – who knows?
The other certainty is that ESPN is saving a ton of money on the Pac12 if they break up. They may not be part picture even if the Pac12 stays together.
So what if the Pac12 breaks up – what does it mean for the ACC?
I think at the end of the day, it’s better for the ACC if the Pac 12 stays together. The Big 12 will trail the Big 10 and SEC financially by tens and millions, like the ACC at the moment – but by sheer numbers solidify their future. A conference with 16-18 teams can afford to lose a couple of teams, and they will have reasonable access to the CFP. You can’t leave a conference out with significant remnants of the Big12 and Pac12. That in itself is not bad for the ACC, but it opens up the narrative that the Big12 is being aggressive while the ACC is simply sitting back.
If the Pac12 does fall apart, I do hope the ACC makes a run at a couple of their leftover schools. I find it hard to believe additional ACCN subscribers won’t add to the conference’s bottom line.
If the Pac12 remains there is still some semblance of a competitive balance between the 5 conferences if not a financial one. A college athletics with a viable Big12, ACC, and Pac12 cannot be pushed to the side by the SEC and Big 10. They just can’t. There are still too many high-end brands and athletics to be excluded.
Frankly, nothing changes what the ACC must work on 24/7 – that is raising revenues, but in the end, a viable Pac12 is what I think would be preferred by the ACC.
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