A Jersey Guy: Time for ACC to be Proactive

With expansion talk again simmering because of the SEC's move to include Texas and Oklahoma, the Atlantic Coast Conference should make a move.

What's next? has been a  topic at college football offices since the world filtered and then flowed out that the ever-aggressive Southeastern Conference was grabbing some jewels in Texas and Oklahoma.

The Big 12 staggered, the Big Ten pondered, the Pac-12 considered and the other Group of Five conferences led by the American Athletic Conference, wondered about their future.

What about the Atlantic Coast Conference and newly minted commissioner Jim Phillips, which has flirted with Notre Dame for a decade, which gutted the Big East in a football-basketball expansion move which turned it into a mini-super conference.?

The early word coming out of corporate headquarters in Greensboro, N.C. was that the ACC was fine at 14, with an understanding that if Notre Dame wanted a repeat of last year's conference audition-in which they won the regular season--they could afford to sit and wait.

But Phillips, who came to the ACC from Northwestern and is now the Commissioner the Big Ten should have hired instead of Kevin Warren, is a new kid on the block. He needs to get out of the giant shadow cast by the SEC and Uber commissioner Greg Sankey.

So here's a friendly suggestion for Comish Phillips, which could work with a minimal of upheaval.

Extend a 48 hour to Notre Dame to join the ACC as fulltime member. 

If the Irish, say we[l get back to you, say thank you and then pick up the phone and make two calls.

Call West Point., 

Call Annapolis.

Both schools have national following.

The Army-Navy game instantly  becomes an ACC rivalry weekend staple game.

It sets up regional rivalries with Army-Syracuse, Army-Boston College, Army-Pittsburgh.

It also sets up regional matchups such as Navy-Virginia Tech, Virginia and the Carolina schools as well as giving Navy-Notre Dame an ACC flavor.

Navy-Clemson would be an intriguing Davis vs. Goliath match up which Clemson would not relish.

Army could provide the same challenge. 

Ask Oklahoma how they enjoyed the Cadets visit to Norman a few years ago.

Adding Army and Navy adds prestige to the conference within the natural geographical footprint to the ACC.

Too radical?

Maybe, but  in an era where anything seems possible, its worth considering.