Report: "Continued Momentum" for the ACC to add Cal, Stanford, and SMU

The ACC could be expanding this week and adding the three schools

Jackson Caudell | Aug 28, 2023

Report: "Continued Momentum" for the ACC to add Cal, Stanford, and SMU /

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While it is not final just yet, it certainly sounds like the ACC is heading towards expansion and reaching 17 teams.

This morning, ESPN's Pete Thamel gave an update on the ACC expansion talks of adding Cal, Stanford, and SMU and Thamel reported that there is "continued momentum" towards the ACC adding the three schools. Thamel went on to say that ACC officials are working on gathering the presidents/chancellors on a call, which is expected to take place at some point this week.

Sources: After a weekend of conversations, there’s continued momentum toward the ACC adding Stanford, Cal and SMU. ACC officials are working on gathering the presidents/chancellors on a call, which is expected to take place at some point early this week.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 28, 2023

Thamel reiterated that nothing has been finalized yet and the details are "only in pencil" for now. He did say however that a decision is expected one way or the other on expansion this week and that officials are still working specifically on how to divide the pool of money that would be split up among ACC members after the three schools join. He said the amount is expected to be $50-$60 million annually and that some of that will be distributed to all members and the rest would be put into a pool for success initiatives.

That amount is expected to be between $50 and $60 million annually. Some of that will be distributed to all members, and the rest would be put into a pool for success initiatives.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 28, 2023

Brett McMurphy, the college football insider for the Action Network, added that one reason that the ACC is considering all three schools is that ESPN's media rights deal with the ACC allows ESPN to renegotiate if the conference drops below 15 members and that with the potential departures of Florida State, Clemson, and possibly others, the ACC is considering power five schools now as opposed to group of five schools later to maintain required membership numbers.

One reason ACC considering Stanford, Cal & SMU is ESPN's media rights deal w/ACC allows ESPN to renegotiate (i.e. reduce revenue) if league drops below 15 members, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ. With potential future departures of FSU, Clemson & possibly others, ACC considering…
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 28, 2023

After a period of time in which it appeared that this idea was dead, the potential additions of Cal, Stanford, and SMU have regained momentum in the last week and it appears that is the way this is moving.

Last week, Thamel reported that those financial models are expected to include significant financial concessions from the schools that will be added and that there is expected to be a pool of money created from these additions and the ACC presidents are discussing how the money would be split.

The report from Thamel also says that SMU is going to have to make concessions and those would include a willingness to take on no broadcast media revenue for the first seven years they are in the league. Stanford and Cal would both receive the same share, which will both be reduced but different in form than SMU's concessions.

Notre Dame is one of the 15 votes that decide on ACC expansion and athletic director Jack Swarbrick has been pushing hard for the additions of Cal and Stanford:

"You can't have two of the great academic institutions in the world not have a place to play. We're working on (a solution). There is still consideration of the ACC as a home for those schools."

Swarbrick also made broader comments on the state of college athletics and what is happening right now:

"A complete disaster” what’s happened in college athletics. “Everybody in the industry has to take responsibility here I'm not excluding myself from that. I think the decision-making lost its way in terms on the focus of the student athlete & what's primarily best for them.”

A decision is going to come soon on whether or not the ACC is going to expand and the conference could look much different at the end of the week.

Or it could just stay the same.

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