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MEGA Conference Realignment and lawsuits Megathread: Stories, Tales, Lies, and Exaggerations

Hold My Beer said:
If true (and it's certainly possible), this has Sankey's fingerprints all over it.

FSU and Clemson are SEC no-brainers despite Midwest homers beating the drums for the B1G.

But UNC being aligned with NCSU instead of UVA (again, if true) would be telling. Could easily see the SEC taking both those schools, while it's hard to see NC State as a serious Big Ten target.

If the Heels and the Cavaliers were voting in alignment, that would fit more in line with UNC looking the Big Ten's way
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So could you see the SEC taking FSU, Clemson, NC, and NC State and get to 20 and call it a day?
 
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Cane6 said:
I’m not saying Phillips could have done anything to change the TV deal from 2016/2019

I’m saying Phillips should have never been hired in the first place.
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I 100% agree with that. Everyone else transitioning to TV execs knowing this was on the horizon and the ACC pivots to a career administrator.

It was guaranteed to fail.
 
I have a very hard time believing this is all as fluid as people in the media make it seem. If the BIG10 and SEC are going back and forth every week on the schools they want to add then their leadership is absolute garbage.

The numbers are the numbers. They already know who adds value and who doesn't. They have their list. It has to come down to external factors that delay or set a time table on when those additions can happen.
 
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Yoyo82 said:
Have no idea how the ACC could somehow be seen as responsible for Stanford and Cal.

That's what happens I guess when the ACC publicly flirts with them and then doesn't come through.
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Realistically I am sure ND has other motivations but is putting that out there publicly
 
TheOriginalCane said:
Actually, it's an interesting Catch-22 for ESPN.

First, if ESPN were to actually and effectively argue for the "we own your rights until 2036" position, that would mean that...they actually plan on honoring every word, every punctuation mark, and every space in the original contract.

On the other hand...I highly doubt that ESPN would honor a contract with the ACC after the 8 best teams leave.

Second, here's a very interesting thought experiment...if the BASIS for the monetary "damages" in a GOR case is "well, you forfeit the payments", then what would it mean if...ESPN wants to pay the ACC a lot less money. Bear with me for a moment. If only TWO teams left the ACC, and two replacements were found, then it is POSSIBLE that ESPN could give us the Pac 12 treatment ("we will honor the contract even though you just lost two teams"). But what happens if ESPN decides to pay the ACC less money than before. Now, any additional teams that leave...would be walking away from LESS money, so the argument can be made that this is no longer "35 million times number of years remaining".

This stuff is crazy.

Bottom line, I'm completely in favor of 8 teams giving notice, but I'm not yet QUITE convinced that the Power 2 plus the Big 12 are ready to absorb everyone. People underguesstimate how much alums of the Big 10 (and SEC) schools are already agitating towards their Presidents and ADs about expansion, and how it is "destroying" college sports, even though we all know the real reason is that a lot of people want to maintain the "exclusivity" appearance of their particular conference.
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Right now I don't see 8 homes out there because of the fallout from the Pac 12 implosion. If that had not of happened ... then I do believe the Big 10 would have taken 4 ACC programs ... not now however. Believe they will take two and button it up for a few years. Same with the SEC ... could see them taking FSU / Clemson and no more for the time being. That leaves 4 for the B 12? Then the remainder for a "bi coastal left over merger". Seems like the "blow it up option" is too aggressive a move TODAY.

Is it possible that 4 programs leave ... two to the SEC and two to the B10 ... with some sort of GOR trading / compromise with ESPN involved? @Genetics had stated that ESPN was getting involved with the B10 as a result of their decision to add programs. This whole question of "who owns the rights" is what muddies the waters. If the ACC, as stated by Bubba, actually SOLD THE RIGHTS to ESPN, does that mean they broadcast wherever we go ... but they pay US (the B10 in case of a move) or they have broadcast rights but must pay the ACC for our games? OR Fox broadcasts the games ... we get $75M from the B10 and pay ESPN the $35M that is the ACC distribution. It looks like a total cluster XXXX as far as negotiating an out.
 
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Hold My Beer said:
Right.

And if Miami lands in the B1G or (I know, I know) the SEC, then it won't matter if we were the first ones out the burning building or not.

Regardless of what mopes or people obsessed with whatever Noles/Gators are prattling on about
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Wouldnt it better to get out of the burning bldg first though? last one out could be safe in the long run but still suffer significant damages due to not getting out quicker.
 
All I know is this:

Today, August 10, 2023, Clemson, FSU, ND and Miami are all in the same boat. Brand names, each with multiple national championships, and currently awaiting their fate for an invitation to the BIG or SEC. Rumors be damned.

To my knowledge, there aren’t ANY other schools outside the BIG and SEC with similar resumes of those four left?

Can anyone name one?
 
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D7. said:
So could you see the SEC taking FSU, Clemson, NC, and NC State and get to 20 and call it a day?
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It's a possible next step, but I think 24 will end up being the number — particularly once the ACC implodes and Notre Dame heads off to the B1G.

1. I think Sankey and ESPN want The South on lock, which means ideally UVA and Virginia Tech are next (and in some ways the last key dominoes) once UNC and NC State are in the SEC fold. Sankey knows UVA would be an academic feather in his cap and an easy sell to his presidents. I also think in UVA's case the SEC (particularly with UNC and perhaps Duke in it) would offer a significant cultural pull with UVA's Board of Regents members and big-money donors. The link on the bottom of this post might offer a clue to such thinking

2. As far as the SEC and Miami goes, both sides can write off it as a bad fit (which is pretty much what Sam Jankovich did in 1990 when he told Roy Kramer no thanks) provided we do get an invite to the B1G. If we don't get a B1G invite (and, again, I think we will), then it's the whole "Miami's not P2 worthy" **** we'd have to deal with going forward.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/23/us/uva-diversity-board-bert-ellis.html
 
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JayCane20 said:
He's done nothing.. I agree.

But what could he possibly have done to right this ship? Take expansion teams that don't add value? I think it's been pretty evident since the Texas/OU and USC/UCLA that there's no solution and just ride it out. The ACC tv deal running to 2036 and everyone that signed that put all ACC programs in serious jeopardy. Blame Blake James and Dan Radakovich but Jim Phillips wasn't involved in that.
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People don't seem to realize that the reason the Big10 and Big12 can make these moves is that they have a willing TV partner. The ACC has a TV partner that is just fine with the deal and doesn't want to add teams to it (outside of probably ND which we all know is not happening). Even if they were willing, you then need top schools that would be willing to sign up for a GOR that goes to 2036. What top schools are going to take that deal, especially if there is no significant payout increase?
 
If you are are having a bad day, if you are having a low self-esteem moment, think about this...

At least you aren't the Presidents and Athletic Directors of Stanford, Cal, and SMU who are being treated like crack whores by Jim Phillips and ACC.

Be thankful for what you have and who you are.
 
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rascon said:
Wouldnt it better to get out of the burning bldg first though? last one out could be safe in the long run but still suffer significant damages due to not getting out quicker.
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For sure.

The longer the fire burns, the less leverage there is for those schools that remain.

But **** is happening fast right now

Washington and Oregon had one foot out the door the second USC and UCLA bolted last summer.

Arizona, ASU and Utah were like ducks in a row the moment UO and UW announced they were moving east.

That was five schools gone in a matter of hours — from a P-5 conference with 100 years of history

IMO, the second FSU and Clemson hit the exit (and most folks think they'll be the first two to do so), the ACC will collapse like a sand castle at high tide
 
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Hold My Beer said:
For sure.

The longer the fire burns, the less leverage there is for those schools that remain.

But **** is happening fast right now

Washington and Oregon had one foot out the door the second USC and UCLA bolted last summer.

Arizona, ASU and Utah were like ducks in a row the moment the UO and UW announced they were moving east.

That was five schools gone in a matter of hours — from a P-5 conference with 100 years of history

IMO, the second FSU and Clemson hit the exit (and most folks think they'll be the first two to do so), the ACC will collapse like a sand castle at high tide
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Get what you're saying but Pac-12 has no GOR unlike ACC..
 
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