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Florida State University (FSU) has been one of the programs rumored to be exploring their options and potentially leaving the Atlantic Coast Conference.
College football insider C.W. Lambert tweeted that the Aug. 16 deadline for Florida State does not mean anything.
"Look people, the 8/15 deadline for FSU isn't important or significant. If FSU is going to risk breaking the GoR [Grant of Rights] then the deadline is meaningless to them. However, I think FSU is stuck in the ACC for 5 to 8 years. It's risk (for breaking the GoR) goes down with each passing year."
That seems to make sense, as the Grant of Rights makes things a lot more difficult.
For any team to leave the ACC before the media deal expires, they would need to pay an exit fee that's three times their annual revenues (estimated to be about $120 million).
That's definitely a deterrent for universities to try and exercise an exit, but the teams in the conference agreed to go that route.
Does FSU stay with ACC or decide to look for new conference?
The Florida State Seminoles seem to be stuck at the moment, as the ACC does not have the same revenue that the other Power Five conferences have been awarded.
The Southeastern and Big Ten are both about $10 million per school more than the ACC, and that gap continues to increase with the expansion of both conferences in 2024.
Florida State President Rick McCullough has said that the conference would explore all their options at a board of trustees meeting. That includes the potential of breaking the Grant of Rights and joining a new conference.
"We are not satisfied with our current situation. We love the ACC and our partnes at ESPN. Our goal would be to stay in the ACC, but staying in the ACC under the current situation is hard for us to figure out how to remain competitive unless there were a major change in the revenue distribution. That has not happened." H/t Sports Talk Florida
That seems to be the next step, as Florida State, and Clemson as well, have begun to feel like big fish in a small pond.
One of the potential landing spots for the Seminoles is the SEC, and that would mean more exposure and a lot more revenue every year.
If they do not have the SEC telling them they would join, they need to stay in the ACC for another year. A move could really change the landscape of college football.
