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North Carolina Tar Heels athletic director Bubba Cunningham revealed what fellow Atlantic Coast Conference member, the Florida State Seminoles, will have to pay if they are to leave the league.
"I am not sure that $500 (million) is going to be enough," Cunningham said. "So, maybe it's $600 or $700 million to get out of the league"
The Seminoles began legal procedures to leave the ACC in December. That decision was intensified by the denial of the unbeaten Florida State football team from the College Football Playoff. In addition, there is a growing power imbalance seen in college sports, where the ACC is far behind the emerging super conferences of the Southeastern Conference and Big Ten.
To leave the ACC, Florida State would have to pay an exit fee and the remainder of its broadcasting deal, as per the ACC's grant-of-rights agreement. FSU's lawsuit claims that the departure would cost $576 million. The school's lawsuit challenges its need to pay that money.
According to Cunningham's estimates, the Seminoles would have to pay a figure of around $600 to $700 million to depart the ACC.
What about Cunningham's North Carolina Tar Heels? Have they considered their status in the ACC?
North Carolina and the ACC
Most of the money in college sports stems from college football, and this is dominated by the SEC and Big Ten. So, the teams in these two conferences receive a large share of the money, and the gap between them and the other conferences has grown.
This is the reason why in the last few years, the likes of the Texas Longhorns, Oregon Ducks and Washington Huskies have joined the two conferences.
However, North Carolina has not made that move, and the financial gap that may be caused by this has concerned Cunningham.
But while he is concerned, he has a plan:
"What we have to do short term is maximize our revenue ... continue to sell football and basketball tickets. ... There's always going to be revenue gaps. It's getting bigger and becoming more challenging. ... You don't need to have the most money to win."
This plan does not involve following in the footsteps of Florida State and leaving the ACC for the more football-centered conferences of the SEC or Big Ten
While doing this would benefit UNC financially, it could struggle to be competitive in football.
The Tar Heels should be competitive in basketball, but why would the Tar Heels want to give up their dominant position in the ACC, where a slot in March Madness is almost guaranteed every year for a small increase in revenue?
However, unlike the bigger pool of football money, which is negotiated by and goes directly to schools, the NCAA controls the revenue of the NCAA Tournament, its biggest money maker, and distributes it among all Division I conferences.
Even so, North Carolina is staying in the ACC and working with the conference to develop not only its program but also the league. Maybe one day, it could be a challenger to the SEC and Big 12.
