CFB insider claims 5 ACC schools against Cal, Stanford, and SMU's conference realignment plan for ACC expansion: Reports
There has been a lot of news about ACC teams seeking new conferences but in Atlantic Coast Conference expansion talk, two Pac-12 teams are at least in discussions.
The majority of the ACC is in favor of expansion, but four to five members are not interested in California and Stanford, according to Yahoo Sports college football insider Ross Dellenger. In order for ACC expansion, there needs to be three-fourths majority, 12 of the 15 teams, to approve a move.
One school that also gets a vote is the Notre Dame Fighting Irish as they are a partial conference member in football while being a full member in every other sport.
When talking with ESPN's Heather Dinich, Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick explained the reason they have advocated for the addition of Cal and Stanford to the ACC:
"The notion that two of the very best academic institutions in the world who also play D1 sports could be abandoned in this latest chapter of realignment is an indictment of college athletics."
Dellenger reported that the possible expansion could include Cal, Stanford and SMU. The Southern Methodist Mustangs are a member of the American Athletic Conference. However, the ACC teams are not on the same page in terms of expanding to 18 teams.
What should the ACC teams do going forward with its expansion?
The 15 current teams have to come up with a decision as this conference needs to expand so the media rights deal can continue to grow. They are in a difficult position as some of their own teams have been looking elsewhere for possible expansion. As of right now, though, there has been no exit from the conference.
One rumor has been Florida State and Clemson to the Southeastern Conference, but nothing has happened yet. What should happen is the Atlantic Coast Conference needs to come together and figure out expansion. If it was to add some of the Pac-12, creating a merger and getting the intellectual property would be strong.
There are obviously going to be negatives as well, especially with the travel, but getting the conference to 20 teams if it can include SMU as well would be huge. It also can tell Notre Dame that it will agree to it if the Fighting Irish becomes a full member to create a superconference.
Being in the southeast United States is tough with the battle of eyeballs against the SEC, but the Atlantic Coast Conference can put up a fight with this move.