CFB insider claims Clemson and FSU will become "nationally irrelevant" if they don't leave ACC in the latest wave of conference realignment
The ACC remains the only Power Five conference that has not been affected by the ever-changing college sports landscape caused by the latest conference realignment. That could change in the coming days, however, as conference officials are in talks to expand by adding the California Bears, Stanford Cardinal and SMU Mustangs.
There have also been seven programs looking to break the grant-of-rights agreement, led by the Clemson Tigers and Florida State Seminoles.
College football insider Greg Swaim reported that the programs will leave the Atlantic Coast Conference to avoid becoming irrelevant:
"Once again #FSU and #Clemson will eventually leave the #ACC for ONE very simple reason...they literally will become nationally irrelevant the longer they stay. Losing HALF A BILLION dollars over the length of the GOR compared to #B1G money."
Check out Greg Swaim's tweet here.
While Clemson and Florida State would financially benefit from joining the Big Ten, which has the largest media rights deal of any conference, changing conferences will not be as easy as it has been for other programs. Unlike the Pac-12 and Big 12, which have seen powerhouse programs leave, the ACC is locked into its media rights deal through the 2036 season.
The Tigers and Seminoles were among seven programs, dubbed "The Magnificent 7," that were looking to end that agreement, according to Brett McMurphy of The Action Network, who tweeted:
"Clemson, FSU, Miami, UNC, NC State, Virginia & Virginia Tech are 'The Magnificent 7' ACC schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ. These schools, @RossDellenger reported, have met in past several months, w/lawyers examining grant-of-rights to determine just how unbreakable it is. ACC deal runs thru 2036."
Check out Greg Swaim's tweet here.
When will the ACC meet to discuss expansion?
While the Clemson Tigers and Florida State Seminoles may be looking to leave the conference, the ACC was set to meet on Monday to discuss the addition of the California Bears, Stanford Cardinal and SMU Mustangs. The meeting was delayed due to a shooting at the University of North Carolina.
The Athletic reported that the meeting will now take place on Friday morning:
"The ACC presidents meeting that was delayed this week by the UNC shooting has been rescheduled for tomorrow morning, multiple sources tell @slmandel & @NicoleAuerbach. They will discuss and potentially vote on Cal, Stanford and SMU."
Check out the tweet from The Athletic here.
The schools previously held a vote on adding the Bears and Cardinal, falling one school short of approval, according to Brett McMurphy of The Action Network, who tweeted:
"Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina and NC State are the ACC schools against adding Stanford and Cal, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ. 1st report by SI. W/only 11 of 15 schools (including Notre Dame) in favor, ACC expansion is 1 vote shy of required 75 percent (12 of 15) to add new members"
Check out Brett McMurphy's tweet here.