The college sports alignment shuffle could see another major university make a move, as Florida State officials are pondering an exit from the Atlantic Coast Conference unless the league changes its financial model.
The ACC gives more money to schools that perform well in basketball and football, while Florida State would prefer the benchmark being teams’ marketability and television ratings.
University president Richard McCullough told the school’s trustees on Wednesday, “We are seeing large media deals that have been made like the Big Ten and the SEC, which in many ways — and perhaps it’s an exaggeration — have created an existential crisis in many ways for Florida State University.
“We will be $30 million per school, per year behind in our gap in conference distribution with contracts that are said to go through 2036. This current situation presents a very difficult situation for us. …
“Without increasing revenue, we will face major challenges in being able to compete in football, as the landscape is changing dramatically, with our ability to compete in NIL, coaching salaries and attractive facilities to continue to build our brand and be competitive.”
McCullough added, “Our goal would be to continue to stay in the ACC, but staying in the ACC under the current situation is hard for us to figure out how we remain competitive unless there were a major change in the revenue distribution within the conference. That has not happened. Those discussions are ongoing at all times.”
Florida State trustee Drew Weatherford told Action Network, “It’s not a matter of if we leave (the ACC), but how and when we leave.”
Florida State Trustee Drew Weatherford: "It's not a matter of if we leave (the ACC), but how & when we leave"
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 2, 2023
Trustee Justin Roth asked the university to develop a plan to leave the ACC in the next 12 months, The Athletic and Action Network reported.
Colorado was the most recent major university to change conferences, announcing a move from the Pac-12 to the Big 12. Other pending moves will see Texas and Oklahoma join the Southeastern Conference, while Southern California and UCLA are set to join the Big Ten.
–Field Level Media