Seriously.
It just floors me that people continue to buy into these idiotic rumors about us getting invited into the Big 12, or the supposed “west coast pod” of the ACC. Yormark has openly said that they’re not considering further expansion to the west. Last week news came out that they’re talking to UConn about moving east….yet somehow when some jack wagon on twitter says OSU & WSU might get an invite (same tired post that the same guy has put up every couple weeks for a year) people believe it.
The ACC BS may even be worse. There really haven’t been any rumors of this, people are just keeping it alive from pure speculation. The ACC didn’t even want Stanford and Cal - the only took them at 1/3 shares, a point where they’re actually losing money compared to the old Pac-12 deal. We don’t have the market those teams do, so we won’t even get 1/3. Besides, the ACC is focused on holding its membership together. If (when) FSU and Clemson (and UNC and Miami) make their escape, maybe the ACC will look into westward expansion in a desperate attempt at survival. But there are two serious issues with that: first, 4 teams on the opposite side of the country doesn’t make a pod. ACC will need to grab two more teams at least to make it functional. The second, and bigger, problem is that without FSU, Clemson, Miami, and UNC….what is the ACC worth? If those 4 teams leave, the ACC is a G5 conference too - at least for football.
If any paths to the Big 12 and ACC exist - which right now is some combination of unlikely and unfavorable - WSU and OSU have zero control over them. Odds are that we’d have to buy our way in with significantly reduced shares, which compounds the disadvantages that already exist. And, that path is most likely temporary - until the next phase of realignment leaves us behind again. Counting on a lifeline from the ACC is especially dumb, since it’s pretty clear that conference is a dead man walking.
We have two viable courses - find a way to cobble together a conference with current G5 teams, or find a way to make things work as independents. Neither are great choices. The second would at least allow us some flexibility when the next round comes, but probably leaves us short in the interim. But the simple truth is that the P4 has said they don’t want us. They’ve proved it repeatedly. The longer we deny the facts, the worse our situation will get.
The ACC, FSU, etc, are in a court battle, if that gets resolved before the end of 2026, and if FSU, Clemson, Virginia. Miami, North Carolina leave ACC by end of 2026, then ACC has already said per Jim Williams of the DC Press Corps, etc, that they have contingency offers to WSU, OSU, USF, Memphis, Tulane, BSU, SDSU, Fresno St to join ACC, if, when, if that happens.
Also if, when, if PAC 2 get BSU, SDSU, Fresno St, UNLV, Memphis, Tulane, then that would be a insanely tough PAC 8, P4, P5, G5, esque, hybrid esque, that would get 16 to 22 mil per team per year media media deal, that would get 4 to 6 to 8 to 10 to 12 mil per year from CFP, instead of the 1.8 G5's get, and the 3.3 mil PAC 2 gets now, and would get a 12-0, 11-1, 10-2, 9-3 PAC 8 champ 1 of the 12 CFP spots, and a 12-0, 11-1, 10-2, AAC, MAAC champ would not goto CFP over a 12-0, 11-1, 10-2, 9-3 PAC 8 champ
