Maryland may actually be leaving the ACC

[TontoKowalski]

I don't know about UNC, but UVa and the SEC were chattin' away when FSU recently threatened to go wherever it was they were threatening to go. I don't know how far it got other than 'keep in touch' but they were definitely discussing it. Doubt they would have added UVA without adding someone in NC, too.

Is the Virginia state government going to let one school go without the other? I wonder.

There's no way BC will be added to the B1-anything. If the ACC loses a few members, we're done. Turn out the lights. I know HJS has a lot of flaming bags of dogshit lobbed his way, but he's right in that if things continue to unfold as they have been unfolding the past few years, BC football will either maintain a watered-down MAC-like existence or just dissolve entirely.

(for a set of motivations that's supposed to be all about television markets and mass subscribers, I still think this backfires and likely alienates so many of the little fans that it ends as a money-losing proposition - if BC didn't have a football program, I wouldn't watch college football - maybe that's just me)

ALso... anyone see the WaPo's editorial article on UMD leaving? Quoting the guy from Lefty Dreissel's teams? That was the voice of the faction I described in my post last night... they bemoaned the suddenness, a few outsiders making a decision about the state's flagship school and its cultural destination, and the idea that the school couldnt solve its problems any other way. Doesn't mean I'm any less of a shithead on a message board, but I'm not wholly uninformed either.

[claver2010]

If anyone is looking for some evening chuckles, you can simply head over to the yukon board

It's full of homojs, 81, and nospace type logic

http://the-boneyard.com/forums/conference-realignment-board.15/

Like this one:
http://the-boneyard.com/threads/why-doesnt-the-acc-just-add.27839/

that works for me. I'd imagine 15 presents a scheduling issue. Maybe 3 pods of 5. Play your division then rotate the other pod each year. 9 conference games like the Big 12 currently does.

North:
BC
Conn
Pitt
Cuse
LVille

Central
UNC
NC STATE
Duke
Vtech
Wake

South:
Clemon
Gtech
FSU
UVA
Miami

[Mod34b]

Even if that money doesn't come through, Maryland will have a foot in the door to recruiting in Nebraska and Minnesota.

But UMD might have a new found edge (RU too) in poaching the tOSU leftovers from OHIO that BC covets. We will just have to rely on NH recruits!

Which is the same "edge" that Indiana has had for all these years.

This moves hurts us significantly in New Jersey and Maryland from a recruiting perspective. Now, kids are more likely to either stay at ole State U or go to one of the other conference schools. That said, this essentially guts both MD and RU in recruiting as both have recruited Florida very well (which they will now struggle doing). BC is going to need to focus (now more than ever) on Catholic schools throughout the country. BC hasn't recruited in 4 years so we'd be starting from scratch regardless.

http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/co ... ID=1438682

MD will be headed to the Midwest for B1G style players, just like BC. Unlike IU, MD can pitch kids to "come East; get out of Ohio etc!" Except now MD and RU, but not BC, can also tell recruits that family and friends can come see them at the 'Shoe and other nearby stadiums to watch them play. This moves means more competition for BC for midwest recruits.

Will NJ get tougher for BC to recruit? I guess. Maybe a litte. But RU is RU. Not a really exciting place to go when 40% of your high school class is also going there. Nothing Special. RU ain't PSU (which will still out recruit RU in NJ) and never will be.

So, as you say, BC need to push its Catholic "edge.". Also this blockbuster news should light a fire under BB to pay for a real coach who can recruit.

That article and your take are garbage. Everyone recruits nationally now.

Gosh, I went back and checked with Rivals. What the heck is the MD "national" recruiting program and OHio? What was DGF alluding to? Hmmmm. In the last 8 years MD has received commitments from 183 athletes. Nice.

How many from Ohio? 1 guy. O-N-E freakin' guy out of 183. 0.5% of recruits from Ohio over 8 years And he was a kicker in 2006.

Thanks again.

[rktbrkr]

ACC just lost biggest tv market and charter member. If it's worth $50M for them to leave ACC maybe it's worth $50M for FL state to leave. Where does MD get $50M if they don't have enough for minor sports.

Big 10 gets 2 doormats and 3 of the biggest TV markets in the country

I was thinking ACC should have offered ACC to Rutgirls just to get access to NYC & Philly TV markets.

UCONN offers excellent basketball and the top football team in NE to ACC, getting tough for BC to block them, UCONN has higher attendance than BC, probaby higher TV ratings they're a better teams and BC is losing football commits to them (and transfers). ACC is a conference in trouble and BC is their most troubled sports program, fortunately for BC the ACC needs warm bodies, otherwise they might get templed. Funny Temple gets back into the NBE and the NBE vaporizes.

[MilitantEagle]

There's no way BC will be added to the B1-anything. If the ACC loses a few members, we're done. Turn out the lights. I know HJS has a lot of flaming bags of dogshit lobbed his way, but he's right in that if things continue to unfold as they have been unfolding the past few years, BC football will either maintain a watered-down MAC-like existence or just dissolve entirely.

Pretty much. Although, I don't think it will be quite that bad. It will be a step up from the MAC, but the writing is on the wall. We will be playing Cuse, Pitt, UConn, Wake, Duke, Cinci, USF, UCF, and if we're lucky, Ville and Miami. Not terrible and at least we won't have to listen to ACC schools bitch about our yankee presence.

[Walsh601]

There's no way BC will be added to the B1-anything. If the ACC loses a few members, we're done. Turn out the lights. I know HJS has a lot of flaming bags of dogshit lobbed his way, but he's right in that if things continue to unfold as they have been unfolding the past few years, BC football will either maintain a watered-down MAC-like existence or just dissolve entirely.

Pretty much. Although, I don't think it will be quite that bad. It will be a step up from the MAC, but the writing is on the wall. We will be playing Cuse, Pitt, UConn, Wake, Duke, Cinci, USF, UCF, and if we're lucky, Ville and Miami. Not terrible and at least we won't have to listen to ACC schools bitch about our yankee presence.

It's a free-for-all game of musical chairs at this point and it doesn't look good for BC.

I wonder if BB is regretting taking the job at this time. I also wonder if BC wouldn't have been better served by looking for an AD from the TV/business world rather than someone who has been at the MAC for the last decade.

[RegalBCeagle]

There's no way BC will be added to the B1-anything. If the ACC loses a few members, we're done. Turn out the lights. I know HJS has a lot of flaming bags of dogshit lobbed his way, but he's right in that if things continue to unfold as they have been unfolding the past few years, BC football will either maintain a watered-down MAC-like existence or just dissolve entirely.

Pretty much. Although, I don't think it will be quite that bad. It will be a step up from the MAC, but the writing is on the wall. We will be playing Cuse, Pitt, UConn, Wake, Duke, Cinci, USF, UCF, and if we're lucky, Ville and Miami. Not terrible and at least we won't have to listen to ACC schools bitch about our yankee presence.

I find it ironic that Miami is pretty much the school that kicked off this whole thing back in BE Raid v 1.0 and that at the end of the day, they may be left in a conference worse off than the Old BE.

My taste for College Football is seriously waning these days. Back in the 90's I absolutely gobbled up any and all CFB I could get. I liked it more than the Pros. I have to admit, I actually preferred the old Big East. It was a solid conference when all was said and done, and I actually found myself with rivalry-like emotions when it came to playing VaTech, UM, WVU, and Cuse. Don't get me wrong, leaving the BE was likely the right move, but the chain of events that have transpired will likely turn out badly for BC when all is said and done.

[MilitantEagle]

There's no way BC will be added to the B1-anything. If the ACC loses a few members, we're done. Turn out the lights. I know HJS has a lot of flaming bags of dogshit lobbed his way, but he's right in that if things continue to unfold as they have been unfolding the past few years, BC football will either maintain a watered-down MAC-like existence or just dissolve entirely.

Pretty much. Although, I don't think it will be quite that bad. It will be a step up from the MAC, but the writing is on the wall. We will be playing Cuse, Pitt, UConn, Wake, Duke, Cinci, USF, UCF, and if we're lucky, Ville and Miami. Not terrible and at least we won't have to listen to ACC schools bitch about our yankee presence.

I find it ironic that Miami is pretty much the school that kicked off this whole thing back in BE Raid v 1.0 and that at the end of the day, they may be left in a conference worse off than the Old BE.

My taste for College Football is seriously waning these days. Back in the 90's I absolutely gobbled up any and all CFB I could get. I liked it more than the Pros. I have to admit, I actually preferred the old Big East. It was a solid conference when all was said and done, and I actually found myself with rivalry-like emotions when it came to playing VaTech, UM, WVU, and Cuse. Don't get me wrong, leaving the BE was likely the right move, but the chain of events that have transpired will likely turn out badly for BC when all is said and done.

Yes, those early days of Big East football were fun, especially when we had the CBS contract. Unfortunately, that contract didn't last long. BC and Miami shat the bed in the mid-90s and the other programs weren't enough to attract viewers. Too bad we didn't invite PSU to the Big East back in 1980 (or thereabouts). But at this point, it's tough to tell if any of the conference affiliation decisions would have made a difference for BC. The schools with the huge fan bases will be fine, and the small schools will drift into the minor leagues. Probably would have ended up that way no matter what.

[BCSUPERFAN22]

ACC just lost biggest tv market and charter member. If it's worth $50M for them to leave ACC maybe it's worth $50M for FL state to leave. Where does MD get $50M if they don't have enough for minor sports.

Big 10 gets 2 doormats and 3 of the biggest TV markets in the country

I was thinking ACC should have offered ACC to Rutgirls just to get access to NYC & Philly TV markets.

UCONN offers excellent basketball and the top football team in NE to ACC, getting tough for BC to block them, UCONN has higher attendance than BC, probaby higher TV ratings they're a better teams and BC is losing football commits to them (and transfers). ACC is a conference in trouble and BC is their most troubled sports program, fortunately for BC the ACC needs warm bodies, otherwise they might get templed. Funny Temple gets back into the NBE and the NBE vaporizes.

yukon at their zenith when compared with BC at their low point (as we are seeing right now) is equal at best. uconn will always play second fiddle to BC in new england on the football side, regardless of how bad BC is, because of what BC offers as a school (as we have seen its ability to recruit itself despite Spaz derailing the program). One borderline D1 recruit who left because of the death of means nothing in terms of recruiting. It was his only other offer and he saw the writing on the wall with spaz.

they claim they are the "best team in NE" when the fact is theyre 4-6 this year (1-4 in the worst conference in america) and was 5-7 last year (3-4 in conf, again the worst conference in the country). This is with edsalls guys who are far superior to the recruiting that pasqualoni has done which has been bad, and wtih a horrid out of conference schedule. They are in year 2 of their "spaz" and have much farther to fall before making another underwhelming hire.

As for basketball, as if it matters in the long run (which it doesnt), yukon is a major question mark. They have been continually losing recruits to Cooley/PC (among others) and are going to be in the lower half of the BE with a new, unproven coach this year.

[rktbrkr]

If ND was leaning towards full membership in the ACC they must be leaning away from it now. I wouldn't be surprised if Big 10 offered to pay part of MDs $50M exit fee just to bust up the ACC, push other fence sitters off the fence in order to squeeze ND into accepting the Big 10 embrace. Great strategic move by Big, they get 2 doormats and 3 huge TV markets, granted these aren't rabid college football markets but there are 10s of millions of eyeballs there.

If ND wins their next 2 football games they will have absolute command of their destiny, right now I think the ACC would give them half of all their sports revs if they came as a full member

[TontoKowalski]

I've written this before, here we go again. The largest tv presence in DC is Va Tech. If you want 'the DC market'. you take Tech. UMD is secondary and may even have fewer fans in the DC area than WVU. Look, the last time I made this point I got a bunch of shit from OJ (the real OJ, not Homo King of Dicks JS), but if you grow up in Maryland anywhere other than Montgomery or PG Counties, DC is a fucking foreign country - your nearest city is Annapolis or Baltimore. I'll bet that Canton in Baltimore has as many UMD undergrads on a Friday night as Adams Morgan or U St corridor. Lifelong Merlinders even from somewhere like Columbia, which is essentially equidistant, will grow up looking towards Baltimore rather than DC. I realize that if you haven't lived there for any period of time, you think that statement is insane - but there it is (having lived in both, Baltimore kicks DC's ass ten times to next Tuesday, and fuck you with a sideways crab hammer if you like DC more).

I digress... the DC market is VT, UMD/WVU, UVA, Georgetown, in that order, with GT being way far back behind the others. I assume the cable carrier for VA is comcast... but UMD isn't going to get a lot of viewers in NoVa. VT would be the stronger play if you are only taking one team and you want DC viewers/subscribers.

[rktbrkr]

If all the other ACC members leave does BC get to keep their exit fees, thats like a half billion! Like Gary Busey playing the Slop Jockey in Saturday Night Live skit!

[HJS]

I digress... the DC market is VT, UMD/WVU, UVA, Georgetown, in that order, with GT being way far back behind the others. I assume the cable carrier for VA is comcast... but UMD isn't going to get a lot of viewers in NoVa. VT would be the stronger play if you are only taking one team and you want DC viewers/subscribers.

Give Delany time. Today was step one... shock and awe. He just loosened up the market significantly to make it possible to grab a team from Virginia and North Carolina. Maryland falling was the crucial piece. I personally am surprised that he is bothering with Rutgers at all, but if he finishes this off the way I think he will, maybe RU makes sense as he will be able to deliver NYC as he will have successfully killed off his competition to the East.

[HJS]

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/22825103/ ... 6#49893596
Video of Pete Thamel rehashing everything that he's been posting.

It just hammers home how constant fumbling of our media rights has resulted in a complete destabilization of a once sound conference. When BC joined the ACC, it had the MOST TV revenue. It went from first to last very quickly... simply because it didn't capitalize on its TV markets (instead opting to partner with ESPN... thinking it gave them security through exposure).

With the ACC bleeding out, I don't think Delany and Slive give it a chance to regroup. I disagree with Thamel... the next move isn't that of the B12. The next moves belong to the conferences where $50mm isn't an impediment (SEC and B1G). The B12 has a composition clause that pre-negotiated the addition of new members. I believe they only get an additional $20mm per unless they add someone like FSU (which would add more to everyone). Nonetheless, they can't renegotiated after adding 2 teams. But, maybe they are able to renegotiate if they add something like 4. And, that $20mm is already looking quite stale if the B1G accomplishes its 40+ by 2017.

[HJS]

I find this all simply fascinating.

The ACC makes the most cash. They try to expand with Miami, Cuse and BC to strengthen their FB portfolio and add major markets for TV negotiations. They fail to execute that. But, in doing so, they mistakenly strengthen their football far beyond what Cuse, MIA or BC could deliver because of a FB gem in VT (though not a new market).

They then carefully craft their TV deals such that for the first time in the conference's history, they have their FB and BB media rights expiring at the same time. On the heels of the SEC and B10 signing big time deals with multiple TV outlets (which included the innovative BTN), the ACC brought its rights to market at the end of the credit crisis. Well aware of the terrible financial market, the ACC could have done a very short term deal (essentially just an extension of their then current deal). Instead, they locked themselves into a 12-year deal for peanuts and purposely chose a single media outlet (believing that there would be significant value in having a "partner" like ESPN).

Less than a year later, the TV markets explode with capital and P12 cashes in. The ACC apparently feeling pressure to catch-up decide to be the first to expand to 14 (adding long sought-after Cuse and curiously Pitt). If it was to renegotiate, we are all too painfully aware how badly it failed. If it was to push the Big East to the brink... mission accomplished... but it also started the wheels of expansion turning that will similarly destroy the ACC. As soon as the renegotiated deal is proudly announced by Swoffy, to his shock problems arise. No one is happy about it... Swofford can't secure the Grant of Rights... FSU starts looking at the B12. While FSU is getting to second base with Texas, the other schools start seeing what it out there: UVA-SEC, MD-B1G, etc. FSU comes back into the fold, but the unrest has laid the groundwork for Maryland's exit.

Seeking to provide stability for his noticeably shaken conference, Swofford does a deal with ND. Again... like with all his other moves. A major decision has the opposite result of its intention. With the P12 passing it in TV revenues and the SEC set to do the same... with 2 conferences already at 14... with his on-field performance terrible and with PSU an non-entity... AND with the ACC pissing in its swimming pool with the additions of Pitt and ND (and to a lesser extent Cuse), Delany decides to again remind everyone who the BSD is. With Maryland such an easy target... new President who was Iowa's Provost... terrible financial situation... terrible sports but great TV market... Delany goes nuclear and may have deftly wounded the ACC such that it now gets picked apart (with him gleefully focused on Virginia and North Carolina as his final two pieces). If it was a long-term strategy for ND to join as a full member, that timeline has been sped up to be now.

The ACC now is faced with the culmination of well-intended self-inflicted wounds. In truth, there isn't a clear resolution. Re-negotiate with ESPN by advancing a "look-in"? Work a deal with ND? Getting rights assigned resolves everything, but no one is going to give it unless it is done as part of one of those two stability resolving moves. Whatever the next move is... and that includes if the 14th spot is to be filled, and by who... needs to have more decision-makers than the folks in Greensboro.

[JesuitIvy]

We may still be in play-- remember at the start of last season Delany went on a trip that in two weeks brought him to Maryland, ND, Miami and BC. At the time it seemed like a tour of the 4 he wanted (tv markets). Maybe Rutgrrls fills in ND's spot this year. Unlike a lot of folks, I believe BC is very attractive to the Big Ten.

[DuchesneEast]

We may still be in play-- remember at the start of last season Delany went on a trip that in two weeks brought him to Maryland, ND, Miami and BC. At the time it seemed like a tour of the 4 he wanted (tv markets). Maybe Rutgrrls fills in ND's spot this year. Unlike a lot of folks, I believe BC is very attractive to the Big Ten.

From your lips to ...

[JesuitIvy]

And that's of course why GDF had the strange timing of his retirement - he had just finished the deal to go to the Big Ten and Father Leahy didn't want him to suffer another round of slings and arrows for a conference move. You see, it all fits together.

[claver2010]

maybe RU makes sense as he will be able to deliver NYC as he will have successfully killed off his competition to the East.

HomoJS, surely I don't need to tell you but tell me how deep into the sports section of the news or the post you had to look on Sunday to find Rutgres sports. No one gives a shit about college football in NY, especially Rutgres football.

[b0mberMan]

So have we all calmed down now that we've had a night to sleep on this?

[whalepants]

[whalepants]

[whalepants]

[whalepants]

[whalepants]

[gallopingghost]

The ACC really needs to enforce the $50M exit fee. MD thinks that they can negotiate their way past it.

[whalepants]

It is time to stop the insanity. Boston College has no business being involved in minor league football, and now, with a new AD and coach it is the perfect time to get off the train. Donahue can bring sanity back to basketball and Tim Murphy can do the same for football. BC out of the ACC now. Create the "Land o' Lakes Conference" made up of Catholic universities that currently are in FCS.
Holy Cross
Fordham
Sacred Heart
Georgetown
Dayton
Marist
Duquesne
Boston College
Villanova

and play 3 Ivies as out of conference games. This is no ali-ass post. This is the only sane course of action for Boston College.

[eagle9903]

I find this all simply fascinating.

The ACC makes the most cash. They try to expand with Miami, Cuse and BC to strengthen their FB portfolio and add major markets for TV negotiations. They fail to execute that. But, in doing so, they mistakenly strengthen their football far beyond what Cuse, MIA or BC could deliver because of a FB gem in VT1 (though not a new market).

They then carefully craft their TV deals such that for the first time in the conference's history, they have their FB and BB media rights expiring at the same time. On the heels of the SEC and B10 signing big time deals with multiple TV outlets2 (which included the innovative BTN), the ACC brought its rights to market at the end of the credit crisis3. Well aware of the terrible financial market, the ACC could have done a very short term deal (essentially just an extension of their then current deal)4. Instead, they locked themselves into a 12-year deal for peanuts and purposely chose a single media outlet5 (believing that there would be significant value in having a "partner" like ESPN).

Less than a year later, the TV markets explode[SOMETHING TRUE!!!] with capital and P12 cashes in. The ACC apparently feeling pressure to catch-up decide to be the first to expand to 14 (adding long sought-after Cuse and curiously Pitt). If it was to renegotiate, we are all too painfully aware how badly it failed6. If it was to push the Big East to the brink... mission accomplished... but it also started the wheels of expansion turning that will similarly destroy the ACC 7. As soon as the renegotiated deal is proudly announced by Swoffy, to his shock problems arise8. No one is happy about it... Swofford can't secure the Grant of Rights... FSU starts looking at the B12. While FSU is getting to second base with Texas, the other schools start seeing what it out there: UVA-SEC, MD-B1G, etc. FSU comes back into the fold, but the unrest has laid the groundwork for Maryland's exit9.

Seeking to provide stability for his noticeably shaken conference, Swofford does a deal with ND. Again... like with all his other moves. A major decision has the opposite result of its intention10. With the P12 passing it in TV revenues 11and the SEC set to do the same... with 2 conferences already at 14... with his on-field performance terrible12 and with PSU an non-entity13... AND with the ACC pissing in its swimming pool with the additions of Pitt and ND (and to a lesser extent Cuse), Delany decides to again remind everyone who the BSD is. With Maryland such an easy target... new President who was Iowa's Provost... terrible financial situation... terrible sports but great TV market... Delany goes nuclear and may have deftly wounded the ACC such that it now gets picked apart (with him gleefully focused on Virginia and North Carolina as his final two pieces). If it was a long-term strategy for ND to join as a full member, that timeline has been sped up to be now.

The ACC now is faced with the culmination of well-intended self-inflicted wounds. In truth, there isn't a clear resolution. Re-negotiate with ESPN by advancing a "look-in"? Work a deal with ND? Getting rights assigned resolves everything, but no one is going to give it unless it is done as part of one of those two stability resolving moves. Whatever the next move is... and that includes if the 14th spot is to be filled, and by who... needs to have more decision-makers than the folks in Greensboro.

There are 13 contentions in that not very long post which are either wrong, misstated or a serious exaggeration.

HJS is right that the ACC is fucked, he's just wrong as to why.

[HJS]

The ACC really needs to enforce the $50M exit fee. MD thinks that they can negotiate their way past it.

He is suing saying it is unenforceable. The guy has been militant about the move and Loh isn't backing away. Meanwhile, Swofford is wishing him well and speaking in platitudes. If Maryland does sue to avoid the buyout, the ACC should countersue them and the Big Ten for tortious interference, file an injunction... essentially, go nuclear on the folks who are still targetting you conference. It won't necessarily do much other than muddy the waters... and cause enough annoyance that they may acquiesce on the buyout. The $50mm buyout is critical because you need something in place to prevent the B12 from putting you completely out of business.

[hansen]

I find this all simply fascinating.

The ACC makes the most cash. They try to expand with Miami, Cuse and BC to strengthen their FB portfolio and add major markets for TV negotiations. They fail to execute that. But, in doing so, they mistakenly strengthen their football far beyond what Cuse, MIA or BC could deliver because of a FB gem in VT1 (though not a new market).

They then carefully craft their TV deals such that for the first time in the conference's history, they have their FB and BB media rights expiring at the same time. On the heels of the SEC and B10 signing big time deals with multiple TV outlets2 (which included the innovative BTN), the ACC brought its rights to market at the end of the credit crisis3. Well aware of the terrible financial market, the ACC could have done a very short term deal (essentially just an extension of their then current deal)4. Instead, they locked themselves into a 12-year deal for peanuts and purposely chose a single media outlet5 (believing that there would be significant value in having a "partner" like ESPN).

Less than a year later, the TV markets explode[SOMETHING TRUE!!!] with capital and P12 cashes in. The ACC apparently feeling pressure to catch-up decide to be the first to expand to 14 (adding long sought-after Cuse and curiously Pitt). If it was to renegotiate, we are all too painfully aware how badly it failed6. If it was to push the Big East to the brink... mission accomplished... but it also started the wheels of expansion turning that will similarly destroy the ACC 7. As soon as the renegotiated deal is proudly announced by Swoffy, to his shock problems arise8. No one is happy about it... Swofford can't secure the Grant of Rights... FSU starts looking at the B12. While FSU is getting to second base with Texas, the other schools start seeing what it out there: UVA-SEC, MD-B1G, etc. FSU comes back into the fold, but the unrest has laid the groundwork for Maryland's exit9.

Seeking to provide stability for his noticeably shaken conference, Swofford does a deal with ND. Again... like with all his other moves. A major decision has the opposite result of its intention10. With the P12 passing it in TV revenues 11and the SEC set to do the same... with 2 conferences already at 14... with his on-field performance terrible12 and with PSU an non-entity13... AND with the ACC pissing in its swimming pool with the additions of Pitt and ND (and to a lesser extent Cuse), Delany decides to again remind everyone who the BSD is. With Maryland such an easy target... new President who was Iowa's Provost... terrible financial situation... terrible sports but great TV market... Delany goes nuclear and may have deftly wounded the ACC such that it now gets picked apart (with him gleefully focused on Virginia and North Carolina as his final two pieces). If it was a long-term strategy for ND to join as a full member, that timeline has been sped up to be now.

The ACC now is faced with the culmination of well-intended self-inflicted wounds. In truth, there isn't a clear resolution. Re-negotiate with ESPN by advancing a "look-in"? Work a deal with ND? Getting rights assigned resolves everything, but no one is going to give it unless it is done as part of one of those two stability resolving moves. Whatever the next move is... and that includes if the 14th spot is to be filled, and by who... needs to have more decision-makers than the folks in Greensboro.

There are 13 contentions in that not very long post which are either wrong, misstated or a serious exaggeration.

HJS is right that the ACC is fucked, he's just wrong as to why.

I disagree with the point that the ACC is fucked...