It’s that silly season again. July is always the worst time for realignment stories. Every summer nonsense stories come out of the woodwork, from accounts that literally are just making up stuff, to more reliable sources whose every word is parsed to pieces.
Every once in a while something gets put out that catches your attention though. One of college football’s more reputable insiders Brett McMurphy worked college football fans into a frenzy Tuesday with this announcement. you can also read the whole article.
Big Ten, SEC has “no interest” to add Florida State if it leaves ACC & ACC stays intact, sources told @ActionNetwork. B1G & SEC don’t want FSU because doesn’t make financial sense, no appetite to expand & “they’ve been a disruptive partner,” sources said https://t.co/YhOPDC3O1k
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) July 16, 2024
The article is filled with brutal quotes about Florida State’s current litigation. Here’s just a couple.
Several sources added they weren’t convinced they could “trust” Florida State as a new member.
“Look what they did: getting the attorney general involved, accusing [former ACC commissioner] John Swofford of rigging the television rights to help his son, filing a suit to expose ESPN’s TV deals — something the other three power leagues are against, by the way,” the source said. “They’re not a good partner. There’s no congeniality. No one wants that.
What are we to make of all this? Florida State critics ate the news up with glee. Florida State supporters dismissed the comments as smoke screens and cited previous examples of saying one thing and doing something else later.
The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle.
I find it just about impossible to believe a brand like Florida State and for that matter Clemson would be without a P2 home should they find a way out of the GOR. The two programs have won 3 of the last 11 football national titles, excel in a variety of other sports, and are two of the major brand names in collegiate athletics.
That said what was said, is not meaningless either. That fact is, and it rarely is mentioned. Florida State, Clemson, or anyone else not in P2 needs the Big 10 and SEC a lot more than they need you. The Big 10 and SEC don’t need anyone including Notre Dame to enhance their conferences. They are doing just fine without them.
That’s a great position to be in.
When the Big 10 and SEC say FSU is not a take, I believe that today that is true. They want nothing to do with the current litigation. I also think they are comfortable saying they aren’t worried about expansion because these lawsuits are not moving quickly. Seven months in and we’re still talking about venues. We’ve barely touched the merits of the GOR, or any settlement. It would take something unforeseen to resolve this before the end of the year.
The reality is we’re a long way from this being done, and I still think we are multiple years away from any actual departures. FSU and Clemson without any P2 home one day? I can’t buy that.
