The ACC & Conference Expansion/Decimation

With yesterday's news of a possible/pending move by Maryland & Rutgers, I became intrigued even more by what is driving this and the effect it has had. I'm going to spend some time reviewing each of the BCS conferences and try to illustrate what is happening. Who is getting what? What have been the results? What is the future?

Today, I start with the ACC and will move across the nation, saving the Big East for last. I have a busy schedule the next week so this may be sporadically done.

TV CONTRACT: Earlier this year, the ACC signed a new TV deal with ESPN/ACC for a reported $3.6 billion. The deal runs through 2026/27. With 14 teams, each school is scheduled to receive $17.1 million per school in TV revenue.

This new deal was negotiated after the addition of Syracuse & Pittsburgh in September of 2011. Prior to that, the ACC had a TV deal with ESPN/ACC signed in July of 2010. That deal guaranteed each ACC member school $12.9 million per year in TV revenue. Member schools increased their revenue by roughly $4 million through the addition of Syracuse & Pittsburgh. Syracuse & Pittsburgh would negotiate with the Big East an early exit fee of $7.5 million to the Big East by each school so they could join the ACC in the summer of 2013.

The TV deal includes 3 Friday games per season in football and an annual Friday afternnon or night game the day following Thanksgiving. ESPN/ACC will also televise an additional 30 basketball games per season. ESPN will also have the ability to shop sponsorship rights to the ACC football title game. They can shop the rights to the ACC basketball tournament as well. It has never been sponsored corporately. The ACC can deny any sponsor they choose for basketball but not for football.

The Notre Dame factor: In September of this year, Notre Dame agreed to leave the Big East in all varsity sports and join the ACC in 2014 in all sports except football and hockey. The ACC previously required all members to play all varsity sports within the ACC.

Notre Dame also agreed to 5 games against ACC schools each season. In return, Notre Dame was granted access to the Orange Bowl and all non-BCS affiliated Bowl games with tie-ins to the ACC. More on this in a moment.

After adding Notre Dame, a vote was held by the ACC to implement a $50 million exit fee should any school decide to leave the conference. The measure passed 12-2 with only Florida State and Maryland voting against.

Orange Bowl affiliation: Beginning in 2015, the ACC champion or Notre Dame will play in the Orange Bowl against the highest rated BCS team from the SEC, B1G or Notre Dame. Notre Dame can only take this slot 2 times in a 12 year period. Also, since Notre Dame will be playing 5 ACC teams a year, the Bowl maintains the right to skip a repeat should Notre Dame be chosen to play.

ACC Expansion History:

Florida State joined in 1992 leaving behind years of independence and brought instant credibility to the conference for football. Prior to joining, the ACC stood at 8 schools and was largely known as a basketball conference. And deservedly so. Florida State would prove so dominant in football, they went undefeated in their 1st 3 seasons in conference play winning 29 straight to start their ACC history not losing until a memorable Thursday night game in Virginia in 1995.

Florida State would go on to win 9 straight ACC titles (They shared in 1995 & 1998) in a row until Maryland ended their stranglehold in 2001. The addition of the Seminoles was a rousing success as the Seminoles won mythical national titles in 1993 & 1999 and produced Heisman Trophy winners in 1993 & 2000.

By 2003, Florida State's grip on the conference in football began to slip. Coincidentally enough, early in 2003, Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese announced the ACC had begun courting schools to join the ACC in hopes of getting to 12 teams and creating a conference large enough to play a conference title game in football. The title game in the Big 12 and SEC had proven to be wildly successful and lucrative. Shortly after this, the ACC added Miami, FL and Virginia Tech for 2004 and Boston College in 2005. This allowed the conference to split into two divisions for football and create its title game.

In Septemeber of 2011, a bombshell was announced when it was reported Syracuse and Pittsburgh would be joining the ACC. By doing so, the ACC had truly become coastal up and down the east coast and were able to add a market in Pennsylvania, a football rich state. As noted earlier, Pittsburgh and Syracuse were able to negotiate an early exit from the Big East. Finally, Notre Dame became a 15th member a year later save football and hockey.

ACC and the Results of Expansion: The addition of Florida State was a coup for the conference giving them a national title presence for nearly a decade. The basketball team proved adept as well hardly bringing the conference down.

As for adding Virginia Tech, Miami and BC, the results have been mixed at best. None of the schools have added much on the hardwood and the anticpation of FSU and Miami playing yearly in the league championship game in football never materialized as FSU grew stagnant under Bobby Bowden and Miami suffered through mediocore coaches and NCAA investigations. Virginia Tech has won the most titles of any school since the title game was adopted, winning 3. FSU has only 1 and Miami has 0. This certainly was not what was hoped for or expected and the title game itself has had trouble attracting fans.

Also, we laugh at the names of the conferences in the B1G for football but can you name what teams play in the ACC divisions? Can you name them? They're the Coastal and Atlantic becausde they're on a coast, the Atlantic coast. Brand success? Shouldn't it include being able to recognize its divisions?

In basketball, the ACC has 3 national titles under its belt with 2 for UNC and 1 for Duke but the conference itself hasn't been that good or as good as it was prior to expansion. The "others" that had contended in the past, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Wake Forest had all slipped pretty dramtically. Tech, Miami & BC had some success but nothing that resulted in a period of extended success or matching the levels of the schools not on Tobacco Road.

The Future: When the B1G initially announced it would exlpore adding a 12th team, Maryland & Georgia Tech were schools considered. Though it came as a bit of a surprise Maryland was being targeted, they fit in many ways with the B1G. They provide a new market and bring the B1G network to the DC area on a standard cable tier. That increases TV revenue for the conference regarless of actual viewers.

Stories began circulating today Georgia Tech may actually be favored over Rutgers should the B1G expand. Like Maryland, it would create a big foothold in Georgia. Tech will never surpass Georgia in popularity but again, it increases revenue for the B1G if it happened. Also, Tech and Maryland are fits academically. This makes it easier for the Presidents of the B1G to sell since they are AAU members.

Last night, Dennis Dodd of cbssports.com posted a story the B1G would actually target North Carolina as well, even it meant in football only. How would the ACC react to that? Could it be done? Does any of this matter to Notre Dame long term?

What it does say is, the ACC despite their hefty exit fee, is still ripe for the picking. The ACC would likely react quickly if any school left. UConn would no doubt jump at a moment's notice. Should Rutgers get left behind, they'd be a natural fit as well. Bottom line, the money elsewhere might be too good long term, not to take a short term hit.

As for the play, football won't be appreciably better by adding perennial underachievers Pittsburgh and Syracuse, though both are considered potential sleeping giants. But, Notre Dame will give them exposure, if not league games. Still, seems they give more to Notre Dame than they get, at least in football.

As for basketball, they're easily the best conference in the nation if the status quo remains beginning in 2013. Should they lose an up-and-coming Maryland team, they would likely add UConn. Tough to say how UConn moves on without Jim Calhoun who lorded over that program. A force of nature, can they succeed without him? Storrs, CT before him wasn't a basketball hot spot.

The future of the ACC is murky at best. Expansion increased TV revenue but it still lags behind the other big boy conferences. Maryland voted no on increasing the exit fee and months later appear on the verge of leaving. What can we take from FSU doing the same? Would they jump at joining the Big 12? The SEC? Time will tell but to expect the status quo in the ACC seems foolish.