A view on ACC Expansion...(link)

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bugboy

Damn Good Rat
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Miami fans may not want ACC

I thought this might be an interesting topic for this board.

Every now and then, we hear someone talk about ACC expansion, but nothing ever happens. I'd like to bring up a few questions...

1) Is John Swofford the man to broker a deal to expand the conference?

IMO, he is not. He's not a dynamic guy and I think he'd never push this topic.

2) What would it take to get the NC schools on board?

IMO, they won't ever get on board without SERIOUS arm-twisting. They realize that they have the backroom power in this conference and any dilution of that might hurt their stance in that regard.

3) Would expansion benefit the conference?

That's hard to say without looking at some renevue projections and so forth. Probably just adding a few teams within the next year or so wouldn't help our revenue numbers per school. But keep in mind that future television contracts could be affected. Also, our image WRT the BCS is pretty bad. Without expansion, will we ever be one of those conference with more than one team that gets invited to the BCS? I think the long-term prospects of our conference are helped with expansion.

4) Who should we add?

Someone that helps our football image and makes us more attractive to TV/Bowl execs. There's also the fan base perspective. We already have quite a few schools with small and uninterested fan bases (weak, dook, sometimes md, unc) from a football perspective. It'd be nice to add a school with a bunch of fans who love football. I think VT would fit that criteria. Miami would not, but they bring a bunch of other things to the table, like TV money and instant football credibility. After Miami and VT, I draw a blank. Maybe WV or Pittsburgh or Louisville? I don't know.

Bottom line: I'd like to see us expand, but I'm not sure who to add or how many to add. Also, I think it's a decision that must be made with a long-term focus. Short-term, it may not be a great decision, but it'll help us bargain for more of a place with TV and bowl games. Finally, I don't think the current power structure is going to push this. The NC4 and Swofford will never push for this. I think that in order to get it, FSU/Tech/Clemson will really need to band together and make a BIG push.

What do some of you think?
 
I'm all for ACC expansion. I've been an advocate for a while. The problem is finding schools that have similar academic criteria to the ACC schools(FSU excluded). Miami would not fall into this category. VT would.

I think if the ACC were to expand, it would require the breakdown or rearrangement of another conference, such as the SEC or Big East. UF would fit nicely in the, but I don't think they'll ever leave the SEC. I think South Carolina would be a good choice, as well. Syracuse has been mentioned, but I think it's a bit far away for the rest of the schools. Boston College would be a good fit.

All in all, I don't think anything will happen for a long time. There are too many schools already in place, and the independents don't fit in. I'd love to see it happen, but anything at this point is wishful thinking.
 
As long as the NC schools have the power to veto they will! Back room power no way they are up front and will not allow any thing to dilute their power. As for Mia no way Jose. VT would be more in line with the supposedly ACC philosopy(sp). Also Cuse is in the same boat as VT. I've often wonered why it's called the ACC the No. Car. conference would have been a better name. When the likes of Dook are out of conference then there is better balance With Dook gone and back to 8 teams add VT and Cuse then 2 divs. of 5 each and be required to play 4 in div. conf games then add 3 of the others giving 7 games in total any school could then add 4 (5) ocf major (ie ala, aub, tenn etc) games to bring the ACC in line with the other major conferences.
 
First Thing regarding expansion is to think beyond football.

Miami is only good for football. Most of the student body does come from NYC/New England.
Syracuse fits the academic philosophy but dilutes the regional nature of the conference.
Conferences aren't good when they're far flung.
Reference C-USA.

VT ought to come in to challenge UVA/Maryland. Though I'm not so sure about their minor sport programs. They might hurt our recruiting though because they also have the state university attached. it's VPI and SU. an easier road.

UCF adds a florida school and the recruiting area.
Orlando is just below the college football is important line of demarcation.
BTW the South ends in Ocala.

Getting South Carolina back into the conference would solve a significant number of these issues.
but it will probably never happen.

Still there needs to be a close regional rival for UMD. That's the hard part.
 
Where is Ocala?

I've always felt that Florida should split into 2 states. North Florida and South Florida...North Florida is definitely southern.

I think West Virginia would be a good conference rival for VT, UVA and MD...but I don't know if they bring much to the table.
 
Ocala it's just north of Orlando on I75. Yes I think you are correct UCF would be a good fit better than Cuse. Remember UCF last year (or the year before) beat Bama at Tuscaloosa. They are on the rise and them being in a major conference would definately(sp) help them build the programs. However will FSU sit back and not veto. FSU may not want the competion back a next door neighbor.
 
Attention! The ACC is a southern conference. Therefore, Syracuse, Boston College and Pittsburgh are out. The only logical additions are VT and WV. I am strongly in favor of every team in a conference playing everyone in their conference. That would make a ten game ACC schedule with two OOC games. GT could open every year with Auburn, play our ten ACC games, and conclude with UGAg. An exciting, never a dull moment season this would make. No more lackluster, unimportant or uninteresting games anymore with this schedule. But...I'm not in favor of ACC expansion.
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I was hoping that Miami would eventually join the ACC. I always thought it was a matter of time before it happened. However, it seems as though Miami isn't quite as serious about cleaning up their program as we all thought.

http://www.miaminewtimes.com/issues/2002-03-21/metro.html/1/index.html

With this kind of publicity surfacing again, I think that any ACC supporters who were on the bubble as far as Miami is concerned will surely say "no way" if they were to have a vote. As a conference, the ACC is far too proud of its academic reputation to let scandals like this happen. This isn't just some of their players getting in trouble off of campus. This is the SCHOOL itself doing these disgraceful deeds. UM puts far too great a distance between its students and student/athletes. At Miami, they are JUST athletes.
 
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