College football expansion: SEC, Big Ten don't want Florida State, per report

Florida State will not be a target for either the SEC or Big Ten if another round of football expansion comes off, a new report claims.

Florida State would not be a candidate for the SEC or Big Ten if it leaves the ACC in another round of football realignment. / Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports

The latest speculation around college football realignment as Florida State looks to get out of the ACC, but neither the SEC or the Big Ten appear to be interested in the Seminoles...

Neither the SEC or Big Ten are likely to pursue Florida State as a candidate for expansion if the school leaves the ACC and that conference survives, according to Action Network's Brett McMurphy.

Given that Florida State has taken the ACC to court in an effort to challenge the league's early exit fee, it has long been thought that the school would join either of those two conferences in the event of a settlement that allows it to make a move.

Access to either of the leagues' more generous media contracts and exposure would be the motivating factor, while it was expected the conferences would be interested in the brand and large following the Seminoles have, plus access to a rich recruiting state and larger media market.

But this new reporting sheds a more negative light on that prospect, with insiders in both conferences suggesting their respective superiors have no interest in Florida State.

Related: Big 12 in play for Clemson, Florida State?

That includes presidents of three SEC schools and someone inside the Big Ten who noted that league's presidents have "no appetite" for adding the Seminoles.

"They're not a good partner," one person said of FSU, criticizing the school's methods in its suit against the ACC.

Someone in the Big Ten noted that adding the school would "expedite more chaos," and that the conference is "staying away from expansion."

More: What CFB teams will jump, slump after realignment

But there might be one exception to the rule, at least as far as the Big Ten is concerned, as a person in that conference told McMurphy, "unless there is some catastrophic development with the ACC and it forces [the Big Ten] into a decision."

In the event that the ACC's existence is called into question by departing schools, the Big Ten and SEC would be practically forced by market conditions to change their view.

But that appears to be the only condition that the conferences would entertain when it came to adding Florida State.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said he was not actively recruiting potential members for another round of conference realignment.

"Sixteen is our today, and 16 is our tomorrow," Sankey said in reference to the number of SEC members after adding Texas and Oklahoma.

Which could leave Florida State looking for a new conference home somewhere else if it finds a way out of the ACC in the future.

(McMurphy)

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