Wait a second. Wasn’t the ACC was dead and buried? Roadkill on the side of the BCS highway?
It wasn’t so long ago that, for some reason, the mere idea of an additional bowl game between the SEC and Big 12 meant the end of the ACC as we knew it and guaranteed the preeminence of the SEC, Big 12, Big Ten and Pac-12 forever and ever amen. Florida State and Clemson had their bags packed and were ready to flee. The ACC was on the verge of irrelevance, if not total disintegration.
With the addition of Notre Dame on Wednesday, the ACC is clearly very much alive, very much relevant and very much a factor in the big-money world of college sports going forward.
Even as an affiliate member, Notre Dame is an academic school that fits the conference mission -- a factor of underrated importance for ACC presidents -- and it’s a big, national name that will drive yet another lucrative renegotiation of the conference’s television deal in sports other than football.
Football independence, meanwhile, remains sacrosanct in South Bend, but it’s a slippery slope from playing five games a year to eight. The football world is changing quickly, and the day may come soon for Notre Dame where entry into a playoff by winning the ACC championship is more palatable than pushing for special treatment by trading on past glory.
A 16-team ACC with Notre Dame as a full football member would have a seat at the table with the SEC and everyone else when it comes to determining the future of college football. The ACC and Notre Dame are stronger together than they are apart.
Wednesday’s addition opens the door and lays out the path, while reaffirming the ACC’s willingness to make bold moves to secure its future -- a future that remains very much alive.
Luke has worked for The N&O since 2000. He covered the Carolina Hurricanes and the NHL before becoming a sports columnist in August 2008. A native of Evanston, Ill., he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. He can be reached at (919) 829-8947, @LukeDeCock on Twitter or
Comments
That's a whole lot of ifs
Thu, 09/13/2012 - 22:59 — Pack02That's a whole lot of ifs and buts and stars to align. You are predicting an outcome that has a whole lot of holes. The SEC has much more money and stroke than the ACC in football. First, how does Swofford plan to enforce his 50 million buyout without an agreement from the member schools? Does this conference belong to the schools, or him as the commissioner. Sounds like a lot of legal wrangling if the SEC comes after FSU or VA TECH. Is ND going to share BCS Money with the rest of the member schools while we hope they join the ACC fully in the future? Sounds more to me like Swofford sold out the rest of us in the conference out in football. The ACC isn't going to have any authority over ND or the SEC or any Power conference from raiding at any time if it wants. These buyouts have been negotiated all over the country and doesn't really have a lot of stroke when it comes to a school adament to leave. I have absolutely no confidence in a commissioner that has refused to punish his alma mater (which is a conflict of interest) for academic fraud in its athletic programs. He has no integrity and no leadership ability for this conference I don't see where we gained anything by this deal unless you believe in fairy tales.
Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose
Wed, 09/12/2012 - 15:48 — ctillGeorgia Tech first played Notre Dame in football in 1992, and they've played at least once in every decade since then (34 games over 90 years). I look forward to these games again. GT won the most recent game in 2007.