By adding Louisville, the ACC shows that it’s getting antsy
A good basketball conference just got even better. In a football world, will that be enough? (AP photo)
Back in those distant days of September, the ACC believed it had fortified itself against all assaults. It had added Notre Dame, albeit with an asterisk, and by imposing a $50 million exit fee it had surely given any any member institution with wandering eyes cause for pause. But here it’s not yet December and the same proactive conference is having to scramble to play catch-up ball.
Last week Maryland, thumbing its nose at 60 years of tradition and that $50 million penalty, bolted for the Big Ten. If Maryland, which isn’t much good at football and has become ordinary in basketball, could be lured by the promise of bigger money elsewhere, what happens when some other league pitches serious woo at Florida State and/or Clemson?
By raiding the Big East for Syracuse and Pittsburgh, the ACC enhanced its already-exalted hoops profile, but basketball doesn’t pay the bills the way football does. Television money for ACC football pales alongside the packages of most of the other big leagues. (If it didn’t, Maryland wouldn’t have leaped.) This only underscores the ironclad law of supply and demand: ACC football has been pretty putrid — the league went 0-for-4 against SEC opposition last weekend, and the conference’s Orange Bowl representative could be 7-6 Georgia Tech — and nobody is clamoring to air more installments of Boston College-Wake Forest.
Losing Maryland was such a shock to the ACC system that the league had to respond just to prove it could. On Tuesday it filed a lawsuit in the effort to make Maryland pay every penny of that $50 million. On Wednesday it moved to add Louisville, which is great at basketball and good at football, and who cares if the only coast the Cardinals occupy is that of the Ohio River? Louisville was the best athletic program available, but U of L doesn’t quite fit the ACC’s high-falutin’ academic image. (Full disclosure: My dad was a graduate of Louisville’s dental school, and I was accepted by its law school.) Which tells us that the ACC is getting antsy.
It’s unclear who’ll be left when the Cardinals arrive in 2014. Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher railed against the inequities of the BCS, saying it was ludicrous that his once-beaten Seminoles were ranked only 10th last week, below five SEC schools. That was yet another warning flare that Florida State might not be long for the ACC. (On cue, FSU then lost at home to Florida. Memo to Jimbo: Beat somebody good before you pop off.)
And if FSU (or Clemson) goes, what will become of ACC football? Notre Dame has agreed to play five games a year against conference opponents while remaining an independent. If the ACC can persuade the Irish to join the league in football, too, its problems would be solved, or at least lessened. But Notre Dame is about to play for the BCS title, rendering that case exponentially harder to make.
ESPN reports that the ACC considered both UConn and Cincinnati, two more schools desperate to bail out of the capsized Big East, but decided to go with Louisville first because, writes Brett McMurphy, “there is a sense among league presidents that the ACC can add more schools at a later date if (it) lost any other schools.” Not three months after enfranchising Notre Dame (with that major asterisk), the conference is already working on Plans B and C.
But Louisville won’t, and UConn and Cincinnati wouldn’t, do what the ACC needs most. None of those programs would bolster football in the way it needs bolstering, which brings us to the greater point: There’s no football power apt to leave its current home — not Texas, not Oklahoma — for the prospects of making less money to play in a lesser conference. With the Big East in tatters, the Big Six of BCS leagues has been reduced to five. Unless/until the ACC convinces Notre Dame to come fully aboard, it can never hope to be more than the fifth-best conference in the the sport that matters most, and a distant fifth at that.
By Mark Bradley
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116 comments Add your comment
GTT
November 28th, 2012
12:06 pm
If my Ga. Southern Eagles are really moving up, maybe it’ll be to the ACC where we can win the title every year.
GTT
November 28th, 2012
12:08 pm
Oh, and firsties again.
Buddy
November 28th, 2012
12:08 pm
They need to add the university of South Florida
Mark Bradley
November 28th, 2012
12:11 pm
Kudos again, GTT.
KD
November 28th, 2012
12:16 pm
GT to the Big 10.
GT Insider
November 28th, 2012
12:17 pm
Mark,
GT will be next to the B1G that was referred to in the statement by the ACC in your article above. That’s what they meant by if (when) other schools leave.
When the B1G took Maryland and Rutgers they sent a direct message that Delaney is not interested in football greatness. Delaney is interested in markets and money and people to spend money on the B1G network.
Now, turn to GT. Let’s run down the list of why’s the B1G will come after GT:
1. GT is in the AAU which is the fundamental requriement to become a member of the B1G. Only school in the South.
2. The Atlanta market. Probably the biggest reason the B1G will come after GT. Delaney wants the Southern market so bad he can’t stand it. He wants to be in the same market as the SEC whom he sees as his biggest threat. Plus the amount of B1G fans in Atlanta who will spend money on the B1G should they have a representative in the region.
3. Bud Petersen comes from Texas AM. He’s been brought up under Big 12 football and he likes and respects that B1G and Big 12. So should the offer come around from the B1G, no doubt that Petersen would sign off. Not to mention some of the recruiting GT has to deal with would dwindle and more money would be provided for athletics also a plus for GT.
Those are the two biggest reasons why soon after the ACC championship game is played you will hear that GT is next to the B1G.
You don’t hear much now because it wouldn’t be right for GT talk to the B1G with the ACC championship game looming. But you will soon.
Your thoughts, Mark?
JAWS
November 28th, 2012
12:17 pm
“Pitching Woo…” I like it!! Here’s hoping FSU comes over to the SEC so maybe us south GA boys will have a shorter drive to Tallahassee to see a game every few years.
JAWS
November 28th, 2012
12:18 pm
To see the Dawgs, I should add
Hankie Aron
November 28th, 2012
12:19 pm
GTT and Buddy- Um ….yeah.
Mark Bradley's Lost Moustache
November 28th, 2012
12:20 pm
Why not boot Miss, Miss St. from the SEC?
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
12:24 pm
The ACC’s problem isn’t that it has been poor at football. It’s problem is that no one in the conference is a significant money draw. It doesn’t have a Texas, or Alabama, or Michigan to fall back on and the lower level ACC teams draw almost no money at all. Even if the ACC became a football powerhouse all of the sudden, it would not have nearly the same amount of money drawing power that the SEC, Big 10, Big 12, or Pac 12 have. Adding Louisville doesn’t really change that but Louisville was probably the best option the ACC had to replace Maryland.
FSU JOE
November 28th, 2012
12:26 pm
as a long time FSU fan i along with the seminole nation have came to the quick realization that jimbo fisher aint no bobby bowden, and last i saw on stubhub ACC championship tix 6 bucks apiece, not much to validate ACC football
Hankie Aron
November 28th, 2012
12:28 pm
Mark- Maybe it’s just me but wouldn’t things be a lot better for the ACC if they could have some teams that are good. Doesn’t winning football games eventually bring the money in like they want and keep teams from exiting stage right? As you duly noted, the 2 best ACC teams (Clemson and FSU) were both beaten at home by better teams from the SEC (South Carolina and Florida) and neither of those teams play in the SEC Champ game Saturday. They just need to a better job of recruiting and then the other dominoes would eventually fall their way.
Bark Madley
November 28th, 2012
12:29 pm
BM,
You failed to mention that Maryland HAD to leave the ACC…..they had essentially went bankrupt thank to their poor decisions. Their only options were to stop all sports programs OR leave the ACC and look for more money! Obviously they were going to choose the latter.
Louisville is a substantial upgrade over Maryland…..in sports. Which is really the only place conference affiliation is even worth talking about.
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
12:35 pm
Doesn’t winning football games eventually bring the money in like they want and keep teams from exiting stage right?
The Big 10 makes more money than anyone and they haven’t done anything in football in a while.
you can't fix stupid or Democrats or bulldogs
November 28th, 2012
12:36 pm
Clemson would not help the Big 12 in South. The Atlanta market is what the Big 10 or Big 12 will be after.
Jacket Fan
November 28th, 2012
12:40 pm
Agree with what you said, Mark, but an ACC tournament final four of UNC, Duke, Syracuse and Louisville would be pretty neat.
scott
November 28th, 2012
12:40 pm
mark,you mean you were accepted into lawschool and you wasted your life on something as trivial and unimportant as sports,what a shame
George Stein
November 28th, 2012
12:51 pm
Several factors conspired to hurt the ACC. First, the conference had the best media rights deal in 90’s, which was set to expire around 2008, if I recall correctly. In advance of that, they added three programs that had been great (the U), very good (VT), and consistent (BC). Unfortunately, only one of those programs held up their end of the bargain, and at the same time FSU also began to decline. When the media rights deal went into negotiations, the economy plunged. None of those issues were really within the league’s control.
The way to solve the issue isn’t with a $50MM exit fee. Rather, it is with the grant of rights.
Mark Bradley
November 28th, 2012
12:54 pm
Mark Blaudschun, formerly of the Boston Globe, wrote last week that the Big Ten considered Georgia Tech and Maryland but Jim Delany preferred the latter. Delany considers — this according to Blaudschun — Atlanta an SEC market.
GIVE ME A BREAK
November 28th, 2012
12:54 pm
Mark, how can you say with a straight face that Maryland leaving was a shock to the ACC? C’mon, man.
GIVE ME A BREAK
November 28th, 2012
12:54 pm
Mark, how can you say with a straight face that Maryland leaving was a shock to the ACC? C’mon, man.
GIVE ME A BREAK
November 28th, 2012
12:57 pm
Slow computer, please accept my apology.
Mark Dorkley
November 28th, 2012
12:58 pm
Mark,
Why doesn’t UGA win something..Tell Mark Richt that. 1982 was a longgggg time ago.
West is not Best
November 28th, 2012
1:00 pm
FSU & Clemson to Big 12, GT to Big 10 and ACC becomes the Big East of a few years ago…basketball conference.
GT Insider
November 28th, 2012
1:01 pm
I don’t buy that Mark. Don’t buy that not one bit.
JoeFan
November 28th, 2012
1:01 pm
Lots of rumors swirling that GT will announce a move to the Big10 soon after the completion of the ACCCG. Don’t believe that GTInsi der is off the “Mark” with his comments
GT Insider
November 28th, 2012
1:05 pm
If I were you, Mark, I’d go ahead and have a draft article ready for GT to the B1G. Tons of smoke around this to those privy to GT athletics.
IronJacket
November 28th, 2012
1:10 pm
I’m going to agree with GT Insider on this one… After the ACCCG, GT will be the next B1G target. Whether we pull the trigger…?
JoeFan
November 28th, 2012
1:13 pm
Atlanta is full of transplants many of whom are from B10 markets and could care less what SEC teams do. Its even more evident when you attend professional sporting events in the city. That’s an invitation to the the B10 not a deterrent. The guy from the Boston Globe is just hoping the B10 will rescue BC.
Mark Bradley
November 28th, 2012
1:26 pm
I don’t believe Tech is bound for the Big Ten. Someone who would absolutely know just told me there’s nothing to this latest rumor, which apparently bubbled up yesterday to the extent that Bud Peterson even heard it.
Dr. Warren
November 28th, 2012
1:28 pm
Would love to see Michigan and Ohio State making regular trips to Grant Field.
Twilb Dawg
November 28th, 2012
1:29 pm
“The ACC’s problem isn’t that it has been poor at football. It’s problem is that no one in the conference is a significant money draw. It doesn’t have a Texas, or Alabama, or Michigan to fall back on and the lower level ACC teams draw almost no money at all.”
Bob, I would argue that these are both problems for the ACC.
IronJacket
November 28th, 2012
1:39 pm
how many times have ya heard, “there’s nothing to this”….
George Stein
November 28th, 2012
1:42 pm
The ACC’s problem isn’t that it doesn’t have money programs. The issue is that the brand names have sucked for ten years now. FSU, Miami, Clemson, VT, and UNC are all programs that should be able to compete with anyone. Hell, even NCSU is a program with enough fan support that they should be pretty good. There’s enough room for a program like UVA or my beloved Jackets to rise up every now and then, too.
First thing’s first, though. The blue bloods have to start getting better.
Swoopin
November 28th, 2012
1:46 pm
As an AJC reporter you may like to address what this means for Tech. Not one mention except to kick dirt in our face for being the Coastal champ by default.
GT Joe
November 28th, 2012
1:47 pm
UMMM, anyone thought about where we would get the $50 million to bolt for the B1G?
Apparently not.
GT Insider
November 28th, 2012
1:49 pm
GT Joe,
Not hard. The same way MD will. A loan from the B1G from revenue for a few years until paid off. That’s how WVU did it when it left the Big Least and how Maryland it going to do it.
Chief
November 28th, 2012
1:51 pm
Chief say, when smoke – fire. Lot of talk in B1G land about GT.
walton
November 28th, 2012
1:53 pm
This wasn’t a fly by your pants decision. They didn’t just add UL on a whim. They had been considered and already vetted. I’m sure when MD didn’t vote for the new exit fee that the ACC knew they needed to have a backup plan. The fact is that athletic wise and financially, Louisville is an upgrade; it also expands the ACC market. UVA, VT, Duke are all draws in the DC area anyway. Of course, Louisville isn’t much of a market but UL has a lot more of their local market share than MD does. This move is a net positive for the ACC. For course, it doesn’t change the fact that the ACC is behind the SEC and BIG but the only thing that would change that would be pie in the sky changes like ND and Penn State coming on as full partners or something drastic like that.
CFB
November 28th, 2012
1:57 pm
Georgia Tech to the Big 10 is a rumor started by someone at Tech with a wish to escape the ACC. The Big 10 just added two media markets considerably larger than Atlanta — and Atlanta is, unquestionably, an SEC market.
George Stein
November 28th, 2012
1:59 pm
Except that the two markets the B1G added don’t give a flip about college sports, CFB.
Here we go again
November 28th, 2012
2:01 pm
Lets get Clemson and Free Shoes into the SEC East, let Mo join Tx A&M in the west, voila!
GT Insider
November 28th, 2012
2:01 pm
George Stein speaks the truth.
There are way more CFB fans per capita in Atlanta than either DC or NYC.
Prometheus
November 28th, 2012
2:02 pm
I believe L’ville’s move to ACC will hurt Ky BB. Pretty soon all good BB players will want to play in AcC, just like FB players are drawn to SEC. Play Against or for Duke , UNC, L’ville, Cuse, etc.
Bumblers
November 28th, 2012
2:06 pm
The A She She is HISTORY!!
JoeFan
November 28th, 2012
2:18 pm
Take a poll of metro Atlantans, see where they are from and where their allegiences fall. You will be that most hail from other states and cheer for teams not affiliated with the SEC. Also, Mark do you really believe that your inside source would let the proverbial cat out of the bag before he or she is suppose too?
Devil's Advocate
November 28th, 2012
2:20 pm
GT Bob just can’t grasp reality. We all know how much he loves to discredit UGA but now he’s saying the B1G hasn’t done anything lately.
OSU and Wisconsin have been quality programs for the past decade. Granted, Wisconsin is a little down from the Alvarez days of almost always finishing 10+ wins. Michigan State has been solid lately. Penn State was flirting with a return to respectability before the Sandusky thing broke. Michigan is moving back up. Nebraska just joined and has been a winning program.
Don’t forget that OSU was the whipping boy for 2 of the SEC’s 6 BCS championships in a row. The B1G, B12, and PAC-12 are all clawing for #2 behind the SEC with the ACC a distant fifth, but at least they aren’t the Big East!
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:21 pm
The problem is the ACC is a terrible product and my Yellow Jackets are just dreadful to watch.
TaterSalad
November 28th, 2012
2:23 pm
Let’s be honest, the ACC will never reach the heights of the SEC in football. But, by adding UConn, Cincinnati, and eventually Notre Dame, it will be respectable. The beauty then lies in that it will be heads above EVERY other conference in basketball. The conference will absorb the Big East’s share of the football market and nearly all of the basketball market (and every other notable college sport).
Devil's Advocate
November 28th, 2012
2:24 pm
Prometheus,
Good basketball players don’t like riding the pine behind other good basketball players. Kentucky is the king of future NBA prospects. Duke is king of career NCAA players. North Carolina is the best hybrid program. Conference realignment will not help or hurt any of those guys.
Remember, from the top everything looks the same.
GT Joe
November 28th, 2012
2:24 pm
Umm, anyone have $50 million for the exit fee? Thought not.
GT71
November 28th, 2012
2:26 pm
Who cares if FSU and Clempson bolt – take Miami, VPI and those foundering other new-adds with them, too. Eight good schools ON THE ATLANTIC COAST is sufficient.
Chasing football $$$ is stupid and I don’t want my Alma-mater chasing stupid.
There’s more to college and college sports than football and even basketball. Unless your ego gets in the way of common sense.
Mike S.
November 28th, 2012
2:28 pm
The B1G is going to add teams in markets they think they can squeeze the Big 10 network into basic packages. They will never be able to do that in Atlanta. Its already here in the sports pay packages, and no one cares. This is SEC country with a side of ACC. The Big 10 network will never get the same draw down here. GT would be a good fit otherwise, but I dont see the B1G inviting them unless they get desperate to go to 16 for scheduling purposes. 14 is a nightmare.
Mike S.
November 28th, 2012
2:30 pm
Mark is right, at the end of the day, the ACC will be the distant 5th. I dont think they are in trouble, but its clear they have decided to emphasize basketball with some solid but not really good football. They wont collapse like the Big East. I wonder if this invite isnt a sign the ACC might backtrack and invite WVU. WVU would certainly raise the football profile and is a good basketball program too. I thought they were insane not to grab WVU before.
Mike S.
November 28th, 2012
2:31 pm
Why would WVU go to the ACC? Travel for one. Their travel bills would be far lower. Another reason is the ACC now owns all their heated rivals.
Devil's Advocate
November 28th, 2012
2:32 pm
What a difference a decade makes. Do you folks remember when the ACC expanded by adding Miami, VT, and BC, ESPN was all about calling the ACC the best conference in football? An ACC team hasn’t played in the big game since expansion. I wonder if joining the ACC actually hurt Miami as they were in it 2 years in a row as a Big East member.
Another interesting thought is that from 1998-2002 the championship game featured either FSU or Miami. Neither has come close since. I wonder how much of that has to do with Mark Richt arriving at UGA keeping a lot of quality GA kids home.
A lot of teams still feature their share of GA players because there are so many but they aren’t necessarily getting most of the best players like prior to Richt. I wonder what FSU would have been like had DJ Shockley gone there instead of UGA. Bowden might still be coaching…
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:34 pm
GT Bob just can’t grasp reality. We all know how much he loves to discredit UGA but now he’s saying the B1G hasn’t done anything lately.
Im not really trying to bash on the Big 10, I actually like the Big 10, but I stand by what I said. In the current BCS rankings there are no Big 10 teams in the top 10. Only one finished in the top 10 last year and that was 10th. You have won 2 rose bowls in the past 12 years, you haven’t won a championship since 2003, and you haven’t been to a championship since 2008. The B1G is much better that the ACC but is lagging behind the other 3 conferences.
Mike S.
November 28th, 2012
2:34 pm
Even if Clemson, FSU, and others leave, its not like the profile of the conference will get any lower. Its getting no respect as it is. By shoring up the remaining major players in basketball that play solid football too, the ACC will survive. They wont be top dog, but the will be a solid conference none the less.
Mike S.
November 28th, 2012
2:37 pm
GTBob is right. The Big 10 is really not that much better. it is better than the ACC, but its still getting whipped regularly by the SEC. The PAC 12 hammered them good this year too. i wouldnt lay odds on them doing well against the Big 12 either.
Funny thing is, everyone talks about how tough NDs schedule is. Then you look at it…its full of ACC, BIg 10 and Big East schools…the most disrespected of the major conferences lol
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:39 pm
I wonder if joining the ACC actually hurt Miami as they were in it 2 years in a row as a Big East member.
I wonder if it exposed Miami. They still have yet to even play in an ACC Championship game.
Mike S.
November 28th, 2012
2:42 pm
ACC football doesnt expose, it infects lol. The Miami that won the title in 2002 would steamroll the ACC just as it did the Big east. Dont forget the fall of FSU as well. Its clear they have not truly returned to the elite of CFB even though they are better in recent years. Now Va Tech drops to their worst season under Beamer since he arrived there.
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:42 pm
I cannot wait for Saturday to watch some real football! ACC Championship Game. Tech is going to roll FSU!
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:45 pm
Anyone in to maybe sharing a ride to Charlotte to cheer our beloved Jackets on? My mom let me borrow $6 for a ticket and gave me $20 total. I can give $10 for gas. I would drive but my mom needs the car on Saturday.
Devil's Advocate
November 28th, 2012
2:46 pm
I think Tech has a very good chance at beating FSU.
Mike
November 28th, 2012
2:48 pm
I think that ACC isnt done with expansion at all because I know that VT/UNC/NCST/UVA is on the SEC list and believe me if SEC ask this school to come. All of them would probably go, and FSU/CU is still unhappy was well and B1G is still looking as well. ACC is still in alot of trouble.
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:50 pm
While we are up the we can explore Duke Power’s Energy Explorium and tell them how a real engineer would have done it! Anyone?
Buzzzed
November 28th, 2012
2:51 pm
Jim Delany wants BTN in the ATL channel line-up and he doesn’t care if anyone ever watches it.
JM
November 28th, 2012
2:54 pm
Louisville has an $84M athletic budget. Bigger than FSU. That’s impressive for a Kentucky school.
GT Joe
November 28th, 2012
2:54 pm
I think Paul Hewitt has $50 million that we can borrow for the exit fee.
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
2:55 pm
I know of several gloryholes on the way
JM
November 28th, 2012
2:55 pm
Mike, UNC is not going anywhere without Duke.
The Necromancer
November 28th, 2012
2:55 pm
If the ACC cannot hold it together then I’m hoping for a Big 10 invite.
Mike
November 28th, 2012
2:59 pm
Yep but strange things has happened on this like who thunk it that Texas AM is in SEC or Maryland in B1G. So anything can happen and dont take anybody word on it either.
Silly Bloggers
November 28th, 2012
3:08 pm
Whoever is imititating GTBob is actually pretty funny, but I think you are likely to be banned shortly
GT should bail ship to the Big 10. If there is any substance to the most recent rumor or not, I believe it is only a matter of time. Does anyone actually believe we are NOT headed to a four superconferences. SEC and PAC are here to stay. As bad as the B1G is, they make more money than anyone so they are statnding pat. Out of the ACC, Big XII and Big East, I think only the Big XII is going to make the cut. The real issues is what do you do with the 25 teams remaining in the ACC and Big East? Teams are going to be left out. If 16 teams per conference, there are 12 spots remaining…
octavian
November 28th, 2012
3:09 pm
Its entirely possible that FSU will bolt the ACC, but Clemson, I doubt it. The Tigers are simply too woodenheaded to understand that football in the ACC is going to be a losing proposition. They still believe that as an ACC member they can shoehorn their way into a BCS championship game by going undefeated. Of course, such a proposition is theorhetically possible, but very, very unlikely.
Trying to explain that to Clemson people is all but impossible.
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
3:11 pm
Of course, such a proposition is theorhetically possible, but very, very unlikely.
If Clemson or FSU would have gone undefeated this year they would be playing Notre Dame in the championship.
Old Dawg
November 28th, 2012
3:15 pm
GTBob: Tech is going to roll FSU? What brand of crack are you smokin’?
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
3:25 pm
GTBob: Tech is going to roll FSU? What brand of crack are you smokin’?
I have an imposter who is having some fun.
Old Dawg
November 28th, 2012
3:28 pm
Identity theft is a terrible thing!
ACC-SEC Booster
November 28th, 2012
3:33 pm
I wonder if there is any truth to the rumor that the ACC is going to merge its football league with SEC football to form the nation’s first football-only superconference? Something that in this crazed environment of continuous realignment would not necessarily be out of the realm of possibility seeing as how there are many in SEC country who covet some of the Southern schools of the ACC (Virginia, Virginia Tech, NC State, North Carolina, Florida State, Clemson, Georgia Tech) and there are some in the ACC that aim to stop the bleeding before things get really out of and the ACC loses more of its schools to the Big Ten, the Big 12 and the SEC.
come on
November 28th, 2012
3:33 pm
Well Bark Madly who should the acc have added? How can you write this holier than thou crap and not say anything substantial? I guess you and all the other U(sic)GA fan boys just wanted them to do nothing and get picked apart. This move was decided months ago and should have been made before Pitt and Syracuse. A perfect world would have been WVU also but such is life.
Tyler
November 28th, 2012
3:45 pm
Another boring article by mb. I managed to read 2 sentences.
Devil's Advocate
November 28th, 2012
3:53 pm
Ultimate solution that will likely never happen:
1. The FBS should only be 72 teams with 6 conferences of 12 teams each.
2. The playoff field should be 8 (6 conference champions plus 2 at-large).
3. An 11 game regular season should feature 10 FBS games plus 1 non-FBS game (1 cupcake for all).
4. The 10 game FBS schedule should feature 8 conference games plus 2 FBS OOC games.
5. FBS OOC games should model NFL scheduling where one conference will play another conference in a season and just rotate every 2 years after a home-and-home. It doesn’t even have to be the same teams involved in the home and home as long as every team has one home game and one road game FBS OOC.
6. Conference championship games are play-in games with the 2 highest ranked non-champions as of the final regular season poll taking the final spots. This could even be a loser of a championship game (i.e. say Bama loses by 1 to UGA; they’d get in over Florida). The idea here is that a team should not be punished for playing in a championship game while a team not playing in one gets a free pass.
Ohio St Buck
November 28th, 2012
3:59 pm
The BTN network currently gets .10 cents per household in the metro Atlanta area. If GT were in the Big Ten, that ten cents suddenly jumps to .80 cents. An 800% increase. It’s about available households in the area – doesn’t matter if 65% of those households are foremost SEC fans – this is the same reason Rutgers and Maryand were added…for the TV population. GT will be in the B1G after the bowl game. GT is not going to turn down making $42 million a year in 2017 compared to the $17 million in the ACC.
Ohio St Buck
November 28th, 2012
4:02 pm
Mark Bradley will also NEVER say anything positive about Louisville since he’s a Kentucky grad. Goodluck with Mark Stoops. I bet brother Bob won’t be his coordinator.
Mark Stoops @ Kentucky = Bill Dooley @ Wake Forest
Just because your last name is famous…doesn’t mean you have the credentials that made it famous.
PittJacket
November 28th, 2012
4:16 pm
Why’s everybody talk about “building better football programs” or “winning more games” like there’s a formula for that and ACC schools aren’t following the formula? Y’all really think it’s that easy or that the folks who commit their professional lives to this are incompetent? (And that you miraculously figured it out in your spare time.)
Programs and leagues go in cycles. Schools with long tenured coaches generally do better than those that throw the bum out regularly. The SEC is in its prime and has been for 8 years, but I remember mediocre LSU and Alabama teams in the 80s and 90s. The ACC and GT will have their good runs, but not soon enough for most.
collegeballfan
November 28th, 2012
4:26 pm
Maybe it is a coincidence, maybe it is not, but both Maryland and Rutgers are members of the Association of American Universities. All members of the Big 10 are AAU members except Nebraska. And Nebraska was a member when they were invited but were kicked out of the AAU two months before their official Big 10 membership date. After discussions with the lawyers the Big 10 allowed Nebraska as a member.
Atlanta is the number 8 or 9 (depends on who you ask) TV market in the US. The Big 10 has only one top 10 TV market, Chicago.
Not inviting GT to join the Big 10 would be just dumb.
Joe Bear
November 28th, 2012
4:27 pm
GT Insider started this thread with this comment:
“Now, turn to GT. Let’s run down the list of why’s the B1G will come after GT:
1. GT is in the AAU which is the fundamental requriement to become a member of the B1G. Only school in the South.”
Nope. Nebraska was a member of the AAU when admitted to the B1G but since then has lost its membership. So not all schools in the B1G are AAU members.
Southern schools in the AAU (that play D-1 football) include Vandy, Florida, UNC, Duke, Virginia, Tulane …
By the way, UNC has been an AAU member for 90 yrs, Vandy for 62 yrs, UF for 25 yrs and GTech for … 2 years.
ACC-SEC Booster
November 28th, 2012
4:28 pm
The word is out that the ACC will also add UConn, West Virginia and South Florida to make an even 16 schools in football and then will merge its football league with the SEC to form the nation’s first football-only superconference where each school in the SEC and ACC will earn over $50 million a year.
George
November 28th, 2012
4:39 pm
I really hate to say it Mark, but you are beginning to sound like some of the extremists who regularly post comments to your writings. Let’s beat the poor dead horse. Yes, yes, the ACC is not competitive on the football field, their athletes are not as good as some other conferences, but what do you suggest? Perhaps things will get better, if better is defined by winning more football games. But, we (me included) lose sight of the big picture which I believe has been lost in college athletics for the past 40 years or so. If only winning didn’t equate to money. The horse is dead. Beat it no longer, please.
ARdawg
November 28th, 2012
5:04 pm
The 50 million exit fee is nothing but paper. Any school can hire a team of lawyers and keep that in the courts for years to come. The conference will be the first to back away. Has anyone seen a check from Maryland? Didn’t think so
Nope
November 28th, 2012
5:15 pm
Can’t trust anything Bradley writes…
He’s a uga homer, ACC/Ga Tech hater!
So is his buddy, Schultz
Why can’t we have honest, neutral, journalism anymore?
Furman Bisher…where are you?
We’re left with wannabes!
Just Asking?
November 28th, 2012
5:20 pm
What’s so special about being a member of the AAU? Is it just prestige?
GTBob
November 28th, 2012
5:20 pm
Has anyone seen a check from Maryland? Didn’t think so
The ACC filed a lawsuit against them yesterday for 50 million. I’m not sure they are going to back down from it.
ARdawg
November 28th, 2012
5:26 pm
“The ACC filed a lawsuit against them yesterday for 50 million. I’m not sure they are going to back down from it.”
_________________
I guess only time will tell Bobby. I would be willing to make a wager that Maryland never pays it and the ACC never collects it. It’s going to be mighty difficult for the ACC to convince anyone not being associated with Maryland has cost them 50 million. It’s a relationship and when it quits working for either side it ceases to be a relationship
ARdawg
November 28th, 2012
5:28 pm
GTBob
Besides, it’s a lot cheaper for Maryland to pay a 2-3 million retainer to a firm to keep from having to pay 50 million. The ACC is heavy in recruiting mode. How is such a suit perceived by potential suitors?
Tech Fan
November 28th, 2012
6:07 pm
Radakovitch left Tech with big time debt-debt burden will be 30% of their budget. They can’t operate that way and be successful. If the Big 10 comes calling, they will join the Big 10. That is the only way out of the debt crsis.
Skeptic
November 28th, 2012
6:15 pm
Yes, Mr. Bradley, this is the same behavior I see when I haul hay out to the cattle.
Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus
just sayin
November 28th, 2012
7:39 pm
“…and who cares if the only coast the Cardinals occupy is that of the Ohio River?”
It’s like Missouri and Texas A&M being in the “Southeastern” Conference. There’s nothing southeastern about either of those schools.
dawgfan
November 28th, 2012
8:39 pm
Tech fans are on hard drugs if they think the Big 10 has any interest in them whatsoever. That is beyond laughable.
come on
November 28th, 2012
8:57 pm
Bark Madly is a pompous pain in the back side. If I was affiliated with any ACC program and you showed up with media credential I would throw you out. You lack any journalistic integrity and every thing you write is the sec’s poo don’t stink and the ACC can’t do anything right. How about you get over yourself Bark Madly you write for a fish wrapper. I will no longer read another article you write because I am sick and tired of this crap you feed us. I stopped reading Schultz along time ago for the same reason, and you have just become worse as time has gone on. Bark Madly you are a joke.
Ken
November 29th, 2012
7:56 am
While I do not claim to know the hearts and minds of the ACC presidents, what I can do is read the situation as I see it.
The assertion of this article is that by adding Louisville, the ACC failed to do what it needed/wanted to do. Build a better football conference. Perhaps Mark is missing the point and the ACC did exactly what it wanted to do.
To assume that football trumps everything is an absurd position to take. Yes football revenue drives a great deal of things, but not all schools and/or conferences will go to the deuce to build football programs. As a Georgia Tech grad, I do not want my Institute or the conference to which Tech is affiliated to take that route. Why??? Because in the current landscape of college football, the path to such a place would be directly at odds with the missions/visions of nearly every school in the ACC.
SJ
November 29th, 2012
8:41 am
I believe the Noderdayme administration is looking at their “Shamrock Luck” and realizing just how fortunate they are that Oregon & KSU were upset so late in the season. They may now realize that a conference championship game against an FSU or VPI&SU could help them considerably.
The other pressure ND has is that they MUST put their non-football sports somewhere. The ACC gives them that. And fotball scheduling is tougher for ND now. The ACC helps that issue. ND does have a selfish interest in ACC health with the conference sticking together.
We’ll see what happens as negotiations go forward with the ND / NBC deal.
demhairydwags
November 29th, 2012
9:54 am
LOL@gt in the B1G let me know when you get a real conference. and FIRE MARK RICHT don’t be fooled by the season he is a TERRIBLE, SOFT COACH and we can’t WIN with CMR
wes
November 29th, 2012
10:23 am
Hey Mark, great article.
Maybe the ACC should think BOLDLY and go after Auburn and Alabama..ya’ know…to enhance their football market.
P.S.
You’re an idiot.
Pieersquared
November 29th, 2012
11:46 am
The BIG has said over and over and over that they want to expand to contiguous states. Every addition to their conference has come from contiguous states. GT will be on an island and recruits, fans, everyone will have to travel for all away games and recruiting will suffer. See what Nebraska fans think now that they are cut off from Texas recruiting. You will be the new Wake Forest in the B10. They are much more likely to offer Missouri or Syracuse and Yukon than they are GT. The latter two are in larger markets than GT and already have regional competitors with Penn State, Rutgers and MD. You guys need to get real cause B10 is not happening.
SEC Headlines 11/29/2012
November 29th, 2012
12:30 pm
[...] 32. Mark Bradley: “With the Big East in tatters, the Big Six of BCS leagues has been reduced to five.” [...]
Hal
November 29th, 2012
1:53 pm
Tech to the Big Ten would fill up the stands. Do you know how many people there are from the mid-west just over the border in Florida that would travel to Atlanta to see a game? A bunch. I know several that fly up to a game twice a year at Michigan. I would bet a big part of the Big Ten’s network subscriptions are in Florida.
odog
November 30th, 2012
1:39 am
acc title game tickets—going for $2 on stubhub!!! get them fast!!!
Seymour Butts
December 1st, 2012
8:08 pm
The ACC got SEXtino the POS Adulterer and the lowest ranked academic school..Must be getting desperate..
GT GRAD
December 2nd, 2012
2:38 pm
Big 10 (dumb name for a conference with more than 10 teams!!) would NO DOUBT rather have GT than Maryland……….the problem is GT is not interested…….PERIOD.
Mark Bradley suggesting the BIG 10 “picked” Maryland when they could have “picked” GT is simply ridiculous………any readers who believe this nonsense is ignorant. Refer to his 12:54PM entry where he tried to be slick with this intent in mind (while hiding behind a factually inaccurate Mark Blaudschun article)…….he probably laughed when he hit Submit Comment. Mark Bradley should be ashamed and is continuing his attempts to put GT in a negative light.
The BIG 10 will regret asking Maryland to be a member & The ACC is a better conference without Maryland!
Go GT!!!!
Adobe - Car Made of Clay - Bowl
December 3rd, 2012
3:26 pm
Good Luck
whassup
December 3rd, 2012
10:46 pm
The ACC is the 3th most watched conference in football but has only the 5th best TV contract. Swofford’s basketball-only myopia has limited the ACC’s revenue. He needs to be replaced by a football czar if the league is going to get its due. The presidents needs to wake up.
As far as markets, how can any conference compete with the ACC on the east coast ? The conference owns the entire seaboard. Atlanta may be considered an SEC market but there is no other city in the SEC market of any size.
whassup
December 3rd, 2012
10:49 pm
The ACC is the 3th most watched conference in football but has only the 5th best TV contract. Swofford’s basketball-only myopia has limited the ACC’s revenue. He needs to be replaced by a football czar if the league is going to get its due. The presidents needs to wake up.
As far as markets, how can any conference compete with the ACC on the east coast ? The conference owns the entire seaboard. Atlanta may be considered an SEC market but there is no other city in the SEC of any size.
whassup
December 3rd, 2012
10:55 pm
Fisher’s attitude about FL State deserving a BCS bowl is hilarious. But its much easier to understand than the attitude of ESPN which prays for Notre Dame and FSU to both be nat champs every year. Again this fall, for the 15th consecutive year, the media will predict FSU to be among the top 5 in preseason polls. Against Tech and Florida, they didn’t look like a top 25 team. They should discount their tickets. They were much more embarrassing to the conference than Tech in the Charlotte game this weekend.