The Atlantic Coast Conference has been rumored with a lot of moves to begin the ACC expansion. However, not everyone in the conference has been wanting to see the expansion.
12 of the 15 teams need to agree for the ACC expansion. Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina and NC State have been the four schools against the expansion of Stanford and California.
One person has taken a firm, public stance about not wanting to add Stanford and Cal to the conference. While speaking to Brian Murphy and Kacy Hintz at WRAL Sports Fan, North Carolina Tar Heels' legendary women's soccer coach Anson Dorrance made it clear he is not a fan of expanding.
"We've built the best women's soccer conference and there's no way I want to share the glory of our conference with two schools that do a very good job of recruiting against us."
He expands on the thought and discusses that he wants to see them not be competitive with UNC for elite talent.
"So basically, I want Cal and Stanford to die on the vine. I look forward to seeing Stanford, which is a very difficult school to recruit against, I would look forward to them having it be so difficult for them to recruit the elite soccer players. Then we would be in a position to obviously gain those kids and put the ACC in an even stronger position." h/t WRAL Sports Fan
With ACC expansion being discussed, it seems to be only a matter of time until they add teams. However, it will be interesting to see if the North Carolina Tar Heels ever give the thumbs up.
What would ACC expansion look like for the college football and basketball side of things?
The ACC expansion might not be the best thing in terms of women's soccer for North Carolina. However, in terms of the health of the Atlantic Coast Conference, expansion is the best thing. With Clemson and Florida State criticizing the state of the league, they seem to be wanting out.
They are also in the middle of a 20-year media rights deal that does not really see them continue to grow financially. If they were to add schools, that piece of the pie decreases but also has the ability to grow the finances as a whole. While Cal and Stanford may not be the right fit, there are schools that can benefit from the ACC expansion like the UConn Huskies or Georgetown Hoyas.
It is more than just the self-interest of one program in a school, it is the best for the group.
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