Clemson and Florida State are looking to take on the outdated ACC Grant of Rights they signed.
Don't be shocked if Clemson and Florida State are the two reasons why the ACC could collapse.
While I don't think we need to live in a world with two mega conferences, the ACC is about to get lapped if it doesn't do something fast. When the 14-team league signed its grant of rights, it fought for stability overcompensation. As it turns out, that was the worst thing in the world for them. This is because the ACC cannot renegotiate its deal with Disney until 2036 at the earliest.
As you can understand, traditional college football powers like Clemson and Florida State are not exactly cool with this. Rival conferences such as the Big Ten and SEC could have renegotiated twice, maybe even three times, before the ACC gets another chance to sit at the table. There is a chance even the newfangled, XFL-inspired Big 12 could gain substantial leverage over them soon.
The other 12 ACC schools may resent Clemson and Florida State for doing this, but they have to…
Clemson, Florida State to take on the ACC's Grant of Rights, for better or worse…
The ACC may be a conference defined by hardwood excellence, but we know what really pays the bills here. College football is king, especially in the south, where many of the league's member institutions reside. The league can be very competitive at times, but we have not seen an ACC team make the College Football Playoff in either of the last two seasons. Clemson can't do it all…
With Florida State well on its way toward being back under Mike Norvell, the Seminoles carry so much weight in this as well. This is because, all things equal, the Seminoles are the best program in the conference when they're firing on all cylinders. Florida State can get to places on the gridiron Clemson only recently showed it can. While Miami and others would beg to differ, it's not about U.
For the folks living their best lives in and around Tobacco Road, you have to realize you need Clemson and Florida State to avoid becoming the new Big East. If you want to be that, that is fine, but wouldn't you want to aspire to be more? The absolute last thing you want is for Greg Sankey to go big-game hunting again and poach your two best football brands to go join the SEC in 2026.
Despite what Florida and South Carolina may have to say about that, everybody else in the league will tell them to shut up, just like the 13 other schools told Texas A&M when there were rumors about Texas joining the conference. No doubt about it, Clemson and Florida State are the two schools the SEC would love to add, but doing so would be so detrimental to the fabric of the ACC.
The only saving grace for ACC football is for the Grant of Rights to be ripped to shreds yesterday.
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