8/1 Morning Update
It's been relatively quiet the last 24 hours. The one thing of interest that has come my way is that North Carolina's status is a major focus right now. The thinking is that should UNC decide to leave the conference, along with FSU and Clemson, it would be enough to result in the ACC being disolved shortly thereafter. That could mean FSU and others that are looking to leave would be able avoid the stranglehold of the GOR, and all or part of the exit fee.
The UNC lynchpin chatter has yet to be put in context so determining what this means in the short term requires some speculation. We've been focusing on Oregon and Washington, along with possibly FSU and Clemson, to get the BIG Ten up to 20 teams. But could the BIG Ten push to add FSU, Clemson, UNC and possibly UVA (or another viable ACC team) to get to that magic number? Adding these four ACC teams would effectively end the conference and solve a lot of the financial burdens associated with the GOR and exit fee.
Stay tuned....
------
7/31 morning Update
To catch everyone up on the morning scuttlebutt. First, hearing that FSU has ramped up its due diligence on a possible BIG Ten membership, including what that could mean for travel. I'm sure some level of research has been going on for a while but the fact that a more detailed study is happening now is certainly interesting considering the timing.
My ESPN source said there was a meeting this morning to discuss the issue of what's happening with FSU and Clemson, the future of the ACC, and rumblings about a possible BIG Ten offer. Hopefully I'll get more details later on what was discussed at the meeting, and what it could mean for FSU later today or tomorrow. Regardless, if Michael Alford's goal was to stir the pot and get ESPN to talking it sounds like his plan is working.
Keep in mind that if ESPN is willing to come to the table then it decreases the chance that anything will happen at Wednesday's BOT meeting. Everyone involved would prefer that all of this gets worked out behind the scenes. If Alford can get ESPN to work with FSU in coming up up with a game plan to facilitate its exit from the ACC, then there's no reason to have a public vote on exiting the conference.
Stay tuned....
------
7/30, 8pm. ET Update
There is a lot of smoke out there about the BIG Ten and Florida State. My phone has been blowing up since this afternoon with a lot of chatter about an informal invite from the BIG Ten being extended to FSU and Clemson. That said we reached out to a well-placed university source regarding these rumors and were told "There are still decisions to make. Nothing has been decided."
Here's a few things to keep in mind. It seems unlikely that the BIG Ten has actually extended an invite to ACC schools since that could amount to tampering while FSU is still an active member of the ACC. The ACC and ESPN/Disney might have grounds to sue the BIG Ten. That said, there could have been informal discussions letting FSU and Clemson know that they have a spot waiting for them once everything is settled with the ACC. That could mean the vote Wednesday might be for the school to officially give notice that it is exiting the conference. Perhaps that vote would free up FSU to enter into discussions with other conferences and declare for one. Hopefully, one of the attorneys on this board can offer more insight into how this might work.
My concern is that these rumors could be a leverage play by Florida State, and possibly Clemson as well. I believe it's legit that the BIG Ten has expressed interested in the two ACC powerhouse programs (too much smoke from various sources to discount it). Nevertheless, it's a bit extreme to believe that FSU will vote itself out of the conference and declare for the BIG Ten shortly thereafter -- possible, but extreme. But maybe FSU's back is against the wall and Michael Alford and the BOT believe the school have no choice but to be proactive to push forward to find a more financially secure home.
If FSU's ultimate goal is the become a member of the SEC, which I believe is the case, it makes sense to rattle the cage a bit and use some leverage. For this to happen, Florida State needs ESPN to come to the table and figure out a way to facilitate the transition from the ACC to the SEC without it costing the school and arm and a leg financially. The fear of losing two football powerhouses in the Southeast to the BIG Ten and Fox Network could certainly get their attention.
If it is a play, then there's a decent chance nothing happens Wednesday as FSU and ESPN attempt to work things out behind closed doors. But it seems like something would need to happen prior to the Aug. 15 deadline to notify the ACC of the school's intentions to leave the conference.
We will continue to update this thread as new information comes our way.
-----------
There's been a lot of scuttlebutt the past few days surrounding conference expansion and realignment with the news that Colorado is headed back to the Big 12. And make sure you check out Ira's rundown of what's happened the past couple years and why FSU is now a tipping point with the ACC.
Pac12
Colorado going back to the Big 12 by itself isn't very relevant in the grand scheme. But what it does signal is that the Pac-12's efforts to secure a new media rights contract, which its been working on for a year, isn't going well. By the way, the current deal expires next summer. All indications are that Big 12 isn't done and the next targets are likely Arizona, Arizona State and/or Utah. Point is, the Pac-12 appears to be on the verge of breaking up, or at least being relegated to losing its status at PF conference.
Why is the relevant? There are still two very appealing properties in the Pac-12: Oregon and Washington.
BIG TEN
Contrary to what is generally being reported, the BIG Ten is currently in discussions with both Oregon and Washington, at least informally. I've heard this from two sources so don't buy the chatter that the BIG Ten isn't interested in expanding. Now, if the Pac-12 is breaking up, or can't secure a viable media rights deal, the Ducks and Huskies won't have much leverage and may be forced to accept a less than full share in the BIG 10, at least for a few years. But they may have no choice.
Fox Network is very interested in locking down the West Coast with Oregon and Washington to go along with recent BIG 10 additions USC and UCLA. The addition of the two most valuable Northwest college properties would bring Fox one step closer to its ultimate goal of owning the rights to a true national conference. The only region left would be the Southeast.
ACC - FSU and Clemson
It's no surprise that FSU and Clemson are highly coveted by Fox and the BIG Ten. This would help complete the goal of having a national conference and at the same time stick it to SEC and ESPN. If Oregon and Washington do bolt for greener pastures then the BIG Ten will set its sights squarely on FSU and Clemson. I've said this before, but it sounds like the BIG Ten/Fox would be willing to pay part of any penalty the schools would have to forfeit over to the ACC. How much that might be, and how the Grant of Rights impacts this, is anybody's guess.
Board of Trustees Meeting next Wednesday
Ira mentioned it in his rundown post, but in case you weren't aware the Florida State's Board of Trustees are scheduled to meet next Wednesday, Aug. 2. There's nothing on the official agenda that mentions anything about the ACC or media rights. And outside of last February, these meetings usually amount to nothing in terms of athletics. It's very possible nothing relevant will come out next Wednesday.
That said, I've been told there is concern coming from ESPN about the nature next week's BOT meeting. I've also heard the ACC's network partner has been asking around about nature the meeting, which is a little odd. It sounds like the lines of communication between FSU and ESPN have cooled off lately.
I wish there was hard information to share. But there has been a definite uptick in smoke coming from the relevant parties. I wanted to pass on what we are hearing and let you know that we will continue to track what's happening. We will provide more updates when they come our way.
Stay tuned......
It's been relatively quiet the last 24 hours. The one thing of interest that has come my way is that North Carolina's status is a major focus right now. The thinking is that should UNC decide to leave the conference, along with FSU and Clemson, it would be enough to result in the ACC being disolved shortly thereafter. That could mean FSU and others that are looking to leave would be able avoid the stranglehold of the GOR, and all or part of the exit fee.
The UNC lynchpin chatter has yet to be put in context so determining what this means in the short term requires some speculation. We've been focusing on Oregon and Washington, along with possibly FSU and Clemson, to get the BIG Ten up to 20 teams. But could the BIG Ten push to add FSU, Clemson, UNC and possibly UVA (or another viable ACC team) to get to that magic number? Adding these four ACC teams would effectively end the conference and solve a lot of the financial burdens associated with the GOR and exit fee.
Stay tuned....
------
7/31 morning Update
To catch everyone up on the morning scuttlebutt. First, hearing that FSU has ramped up its due diligence on a possible BIG Ten membership, including what that could mean for travel. I'm sure some level of research has been going on for a while but the fact that a more detailed study is happening now is certainly interesting considering the timing.
My ESPN source said there was a meeting this morning to discuss the issue of what's happening with FSU and Clemson, the future of the ACC, and rumblings about a possible BIG Ten offer. Hopefully I'll get more details later on what was discussed at the meeting, and what it could mean for FSU later today or tomorrow. Regardless, if Michael Alford's goal was to stir the pot and get ESPN to talking it sounds like his plan is working.
Keep in mind that if ESPN is willing to come to the table then it decreases the chance that anything will happen at Wednesday's BOT meeting. Everyone involved would prefer that all of this gets worked out behind the scenes. If Alford can get ESPN to work with FSU in coming up up with a game plan to facilitate its exit from the ACC, then there's no reason to have a public vote on exiting the conference.
Stay tuned....
------
7/30, 8pm. ET Update
There is a lot of smoke out there about the BIG Ten and Florida State. My phone has been blowing up since this afternoon with a lot of chatter about an informal invite from the BIG Ten being extended to FSU and Clemson. That said we reached out to a well-placed university source regarding these rumors and were told "There are still decisions to make. Nothing has been decided."
Here's a few things to keep in mind. It seems unlikely that the BIG Ten has actually extended an invite to ACC schools since that could amount to tampering while FSU is still an active member of the ACC. The ACC and ESPN/Disney might have grounds to sue the BIG Ten. That said, there could have been informal discussions letting FSU and Clemson know that they have a spot waiting for them once everything is settled with the ACC. That could mean the vote Wednesday might be for the school to officially give notice that it is exiting the conference. Perhaps that vote would free up FSU to enter into discussions with other conferences and declare for one. Hopefully, one of the attorneys on this board can offer more insight into how this might work.
My concern is that these rumors could be a leverage play by Florida State, and possibly Clemson as well. I believe it's legit that the BIG Ten has expressed interested in the two ACC powerhouse programs (too much smoke from various sources to discount it). Nevertheless, it's a bit extreme to believe that FSU will vote itself out of the conference and declare for the BIG Ten shortly thereafter -- possible, but extreme. But maybe FSU's back is against the wall and Michael Alford and the BOT believe the school have no choice but to be proactive to push forward to find a more financially secure home.
If FSU's ultimate goal is the become a member of the SEC, which I believe is the case, it makes sense to rattle the cage a bit and use some leverage. For this to happen, Florida State needs ESPN to come to the table and figure out a way to facilitate the transition from the ACC to the SEC without it costing the school and arm and a leg financially. The fear of losing two football powerhouses in the Southeast to the BIG Ten and Fox Network could certainly get their attention.
If it is a play, then there's a decent chance nothing happens Wednesday as FSU and ESPN attempt to work things out behind closed doors. But it seems like something would need to happen prior to the Aug. 15 deadline to notify the ACC of the school's intentions to leave the conference.
We will continue to update this thread as new information comes our way.
-----------
There's been a lot of scuttlebutt the past few days surrounding conference expansion and realignment with the news that Colorado is headed back to the Big 12. And make sure you check out Ira's rundown of what's happened the past couple years and why FSU is now a tipping point with the ACC.
Pac12
Colorado going back to the Big 12 by itself isn't very relevant in the grand scheme. But what it does signal is that the Pac-12's efforts to secure a new media rights contract, which its been working on for a year, isn't going well. By the way, the current deal expires next summer. All indications are that Big 12 isn't done and the next targets are likely Arizona, Arizona State and/or Utah. Point is, the Pac-12 appears to be on the verge of breaking up, or at least being relegated to losing its status at PF conference.
Why is the relevant? There are still two very appealing properties in the Pac-12: Oregon and Washington.
BIG TEN
Contrary to what is generally being reported, the BIG Ten is currently in discussions with both Oregon and Washington, at least informally. I've heard this from two sources so don't buy the chatter that the BIG Ten isn't interested in expanding. Now, if the Pac-12 is breaking up, or can't secure a viable media rights deal, the Ducks and Huskies won't have much leverage and may be forced to accept a less than full share in the BIG 10, at least for a few years. But they may have no choice.
Fox Network is very interested in locking down the West Coast with Oregon and Washington to go along with recent BIG 10 additions USC and UCLA. The addition of the two most valuable Northwest college properties would bring Fox one step closer to its ultimate goal of owning the rights to a true national conference. The only region left would be the Southeast.
ACC - FSU and Clemson
It's no surprise that FSU and Clemson are highly coveted by Fox and the BIG Ten. This would help complete the goal of having a national conference and at the same time stick it to SEC and ESPN. If Oregon and Washington do bolt for greener pastures then the BIG Ten will set its sights squarely on FSU and Clemson. I've said this before, but it sounds like the BIG Ten/Fox would be willing to pay part of any penalty the schools would have to forfeit over to the ACC. How much that might be, and how the Grant of Rights impacts this, is anybody's guess.
Board of Trustees Meeting next Wednesday
Ira mentioned it in his rundown post, but in case you weren't aware the Florida State's Board of Trustees are scheduled to meet next Wednesday, Aug. 2. There's nothing on the official agenda that mentions anything about the ACC or media rights. And outside of last February, these meetings usually amount to nothing in terms of athletics. It's very possible nothing relevant will come out next Wednesday.
That said, I've been told there is concern coming from ESPN about the nature next week's BOT meeting. I've also heard the ACC's network partner has been asking around about nature the meeting, which is a little odd. It sounds like the lines of communication between FSU and ESPN have cooled off lately.
I wish there was hard information to share. But there has been a definite uptick in smoke coming from the relevant parties. I wanted to pass on what we are hearing and let you know that we will continue to track what's happening. We will provide more updates when they come our way.
Stay tuned......
