Many on the board see the AAC as a way to keep ourselves relevant. I agree it could work - but it's nowhere near automatic.
IMO, the ACC and their ongoing Lawsuit(s) / discussions with Florida State and Clemson are a player in the calculations that need to be considered.
See article below dated yesterday.
If the FSU/Clemson lawsuit continues there is a strong possibility Memphis and/or Tulane will not jump to the PAC any time soon. They would be foolish to pay exit fees when FSU/Clemson could bolt from the ACC and open space for them in that conference. The ACC currently receives a payout of over $ 40 million. It would degrade significantly without FSU/Clemson but not so much Memphis and Tulane wouldn't love to be a part of the conference. I see it in their best interest to wait and see.
If they don't jump, then the AAC will be at 14 schools. Their near term options would be stay at 14 or expand. If they choose to expand (and that isn't a given) AF would likely be their first choice for expansion. But all the discussions about AF is conjecture and there's been no statements from the AAC. It could just as easily be the AAC stays at 14 and decides not to take on the additional travel for AF and UNLV. Or it could be they take AF and decide on an additional Texas school or Eastern school instead of us.
This entire fiasco is conjecture, but I don't think an AAC birth is as obvious as many of us hope.
IMO, the ACC and their ongoing Lawsuit(s) / discussions with Florida State and Clemson are a player in the calculations that need to be considered.
See article below dated yesterday.
Sources: ACC, Clemson, FSU renew revenue talks
Talks between Clemson, Florida State and the ACC have ramped up in recent weeks, sources told ESPN, on a revenue distribution model based on brand valuation and television ratings in exchange for the schools dropping their lawsuits against the conference.
www.espn.com
If the FSU/Clemson lawsuit continues there is a strong possibility Memphis and/or Tulane will not jump to the PAC any time soon. They would be foolish to pay exit fees when FSU/Clemson could bolt from the ACC and open space for them in that conference. The ACC currently receives a payout of over $ 40 million. It would degrade significantly without FSU/Clemson but not so much Memphis and Tulane wouldn't love to be a part of the conference. I see it in their best interest to wait and see.
If they don't jump, then the AAC will be at 14 schools. Their near term options would be stay at 14 or expand. If they choose to expand (and that isn't a given) AF would likely be their first choice for expansion. But all the discussions about AF is conjecture and there's been no statements from the AAC. It could just as easily be the AAC stays at 14 and decides not to take on the additional travel for AF and UNLV. Or it could be they take AF and decide on an additional Texas school or Eastern school instead of us.
This entire fiasco is conjecture, but I don't think an AAC birth is as obvious as many of us hope.