Anthony Wilson
AMELIA ISLAND, Florida – The future of Florida State and Clemsonamid ongoing litigation against the Atlantic Coast Conference hung over the ACC’s spring meetings this week, but commissioner Jim Phillips remained optimistic that those relationships could still be salvaged.
The conference is currently involved in several lawsuits with Florida State and Clemson as the two schools legally challenge the ACC’s granting of rights and position themselves to possibly leave the conference. At the heart of the dispute is the ACC falling behind rival conferences the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference in revenue, a disparity that will only increase under the College Football Playoff’s new distribution model.
Florida State and Clemson’s departure from the ACC has long seemed like a fait accompli, only amplified by the multiple lawsuits that have been filed, and yet Phillips, one of the nicest people in a cutthroat industry, insisted he would remain positive about all outcomes. possible in the face of mounting evidence of an imminent divorce.
“I’m always optimistic about a really good ending to a difficult situation,” Phillips said. “I will never change until someone tells me otherwise. Will I fight and protect the ACC? Absolutely. I have to. That’s my responsibility.”
Phillips appeared more optimistic about the chances of the relationship being restored than Florida State athletic director Michael Alford who was asked a similar question a day earlier. Alford was careful to speak only positively about the excellent relationships the school enjoyed during the conference and seemed grateful that FSU was included in all of this week’s meetings on Amelia Island. But when asked if the marriage could still be saved, Alford said, “Let’s just hope that happens” and that “we have to do what’s best for the state of Florida and watch the changing environment of college athletics.” and make sure we are there to succeed.”
The public optimism expressed at the conclusion of the ACC meetings does not mean that Phillips is not frustrated with the situation. He reiterated Wednesday that Florida State and Clemson’s actions are not helpful and worried they were overshadowing all the positive things happening in the conference.
“It’s difficult, it’s upsetting, it’s harmful, but that’s the world we live in,” the ACC commissioner said. “They have the ability to do the things they’re doing and we’ll let the legal people handle that because that’s the right thing to do.”
Not only does the conference face lawsuits from Clemson and Florida State challenging its strict rights grant, but the league also faces questions about its long-running television media contract with ESPN, which runs through 2036. Florida State alleged in a lawsuit filed in December that the ACC’s deal with ESPN includes a unilateral option for the network that must be executed in February 2025 to extend the deal through 2036. In essence, ESPN could void the contract and resign in 2027.
Phillips, however, reiterated Wednesday that the conference’s business relationship with ESPN is strong.
“I can’t go into detail about this, but the partnership will not disappear nor will it be negatively affected,” he said. “It’s an analysis and we are dealing with part of what that specific element of the contract states.”
The ESPN contract is not available for public consumption, and the only leaked details came from the five ongoing lawsuits between the ACC, FSU and Clemson. When asked whether the consultation clause allows for a change to the financial structure of the deal, Phillips declined to confirm. “I won’t discuss this publicly because we haven’t reached the finish line yet on what we’re talking about,” he said.
Theoretically, expanding the conference with the addition of SMU, Cal and Stanford in the fall could help those financial numbers as the ACC Network enters the Dallas and Northern California television markets.
“We have full distribution in our current states and in our current markets, and this was something that when I arrived three and a half years ago, I heard distress: we are not in all the markets where our school is (located) and we are not getting revenue from it when we’re not in business,” Phillips said. “So we’re in full distribution – and that’s the goal as we get to Northern California and Dallas.”
If there are multiple lawsuits, the looming threat of Florida State and Clemson defecting from the conference and the Potential settlement of House v. NCAA leading to a seismic shift toward revenue sharing (up to $22 million per school annually) weren’t enough to make an accountant’s head spin, the ACC is still combing through the details of the “successful initiatives” proposed by Clemson and by Florida State 18 months ago, this would financially reward programs for success on the field and court.
Phillips and the athletic directors again did not elaborate on the specifics of the model, which will take into account regular-season and postseason success and is expected to lean heavily on football success. Sources told CBS Sports that cumulative bonuses for a team that wins the national championship could reach $20 million in a concept discussed among leaders. An appearance in the first round of the new 12- or 14-team playoff would reward the team with a $4 million bonus, sources said.
Florida State and Clemson have dominated the realignment conversation because of their lawsuits, but revenue unhappiness isn’t limited to these two ACC schools. A meeting of University of North Carolina trustees that investigated trustees’ concerns about the way UNC AD Bubba Cunningham managed athletics department revenues included one trustee pushing for the school to consider leaving the conference that helped create in 1953. Cunningham told CBS Sports earlier this year. week he had no reaction and would be prepared for a trustees meeting on Thursday.
“I’m advocating for this,” trustee Dave Boliek said during the meeting. “That’s what we need to do. We need to do everything we can to get there. Or the alternative is the ACC will have to rebuild. I think all options are on the table.”
Phillips said Wednesday that he hopes to learn more about the situation when he returns to conference headquarters in Charlotte, but so far no one from the school has said anything to him or the league about wanting to leave.
“These are campus discussions and policies that are going on, so I don’t know what’s true and what’s not,” he said.
