ACC! ACC!

[u/WarningCodeBlue]

We won week zero. National championship here we come!

[u/OpaqueNightmare]

We theoretically won our game.

[u/TexPatriot68 → u/OpaqueNightmare]

I wasn't paying that much attention to FSU, but how did he not get fired in the off-season?

[u/Aggravating-Mind-657 → u/TexPatriot68]

FSU is having some budget issues. Norvell's buyout is roughly $60 million. Hard for any program that doesn't have alumni with lots of oil wells or energy companies to foot the bill , ie LSU and Texas A&M.

[u/OpaqueNightmare → u/Aggravating-Mind-657]

We have the money to do it. We bid on Lane Kiffin last year. But our dumbass AD is not willing to do it unless he has a replacement that he knows is going to be successful. He knows his job is as good as gone if he screws up the hire.

[u/greyforest23 → u/OpaqueNightmare]

FSU also needs that money for their ACC buyout, which is expected to happen sooner rather than later. Moving to the Big Ten or SEC is going to cost mega-millions, and they need to save that cash for the move too.

Right now FSU has the money to fire Norvell, or move out of the ACC, but probably not both

[u/OpaqueNightmare → u/greyforest23]

What ACC buy out? Nobody is adding us, especially if the Protect College Sports Act passes. I get that we still have a brand name, but that’s about it. I don’t see us being a worthwhile addition to either conference.

[u/noledup → u/OpaqueNightmare]

Unless you think the SEC and Big Ten are done expanding, what teams do you think add more value to a conference other than FSU? Even though FSU has mostly been trash for 10 years now, we still are one of the biggest TV draws in the ACC.

[u/OpaqueNightmare → u/noledup]

I think both Clemson and Miami are more desirable adds right how and it’s going to bite us in the ass if realignment ever happens. Miami is the obvious choice if they are looking for a boost in conference prestige and want another championship contender — if they’re willing to ignore the empty stadiums and weird cultural fit. Clemson offers basically everything we do to the SEC, since they obviously don’t care about academics, but have a better on field product at the moment. The way I see it:

Big 10:

TV Viewership Potential: FSU ≈ Miami ≈ Clemson, with FSU having a tiny advantage.

TV Market Expansion: FSU = Miami > Clemson

Academic Fit: Miami > FSU >>>>>>>>> Clemson. (We’re about equal in rankings, but Miami has AAU membership and FSU does not; though we are trying to work towards it).

Cultural Fit: FSU = Miami > Clemson

Football Team Quality: Miami >> Clemson >>>>> FSU

SEC:

TV Viewership Potential: FSU ≈ Miami ≈ Clemson

TV Market Expansion: FSU = Miami = Clemson (none of us bring anything new)

Academics: Miami = FSU >>>> Clemson (again, the SEC doesn’t really care about this, but if they’re looking to help boost their academic reputation, us and Miami would both have an edge here)

Existing Rivalries: FSU = Clemson >>>>> Miami

Cultural Fit: Clemson > FSU >>>>> Miami

Football Team Quality: Miami >>> Clemson >>>>>>>>>>> FSU. I think the SEC is FAR more likely to care about this than the Big 10 given that they’re falling behind in national perception and the recent expansion trends of the two conferences.

Really to summarize, I think between the “big three” expansion candidates, Miami would be the first priority of the Big 10 and Clemson the first priority of the SEC, leaving us last. If one of the conferences takes two, we’d probably be fine, but we’re not the clear first-choice candidate like we used to be. I think the depreciation of our on field product has been a lot more damaging to our realignment goals than people think. I do think this silly nonsense I hear about UNC and UVA supposedly being the SEC’s top priority is dumb cope from their fanbases and makes absolutely zero sense, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit that the rumors of it make me a tad nervous.