Report: ACC To Discuss Potential Cal, Stanford, SMU Additions in Friday Meeting

Cal, Stanford and SMU may learn their ACC fates as soon as Friday.

Stewart Mandel and Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic reported the ACC presidents will meet Friday and "potentially vote on the additions" of the three schools that have been connected to the league during the summer of conference realignment.

The meeting was postponed earlier this week because of the shooting on the University of North Carolina's campus.

If there is a vote, 12 of the league's 15 members will need to approve the additions.

Mandel and Auerbach noted Florida State, Clemson, North Carolina and NC State voted against adding the schools during a previous straw poll, meaning at least one would have to change its mind if the expansion is going to happen.

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips has attempted to change those minds by offering financial models that would provide more money for current members if Cal, Stanford and SMU are added.

As Mandel and Auerbach explained, Cal and Stanford would accept approximately 30 percent of the ACC media rights revenue at the start of their inclusion in the conference and gradually see that increase. That is more than SMU, which is reportedly willing to accept no media rights revenue for at least seven years.

That would create a new pool of money from ESPN, which is required to pay the full share for new members as part of the media deal.

Under Phillips' proposal, that new money would be used to reward schools for College Football Playoff participation, conference championships and other accomplishments, which would seemingly be appealing for Florida State and Clemson in particular given how much emphasis the programs put on football.

Such an incentive could be particularly appealing to Florida State, which made waves earlier this summer when school president Richard McCullough suggested it could leave the conference in an effort to make more money with the ACC trailing the SEC and Big Ten in revenue generated from media rights deals.

For now, the ACC has been on the sidelines in recent conference realignment with Oklahoma and Texas headed to the SEC after the 2023 season. Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington are going to the Big Ten on the same timeline, while Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah are going to the Big 12 after this season as well.

That means the Pac-12 may no longer exist in 2024, which has left Cal, Stanford, Oregon State and Washington State looking for new homes.

Such a development hasn't exactly put Cal and Stanford in a position of leverage in any discussions, which would explain why they are reportedly willing to accept less than a full media rights payout to join the ACC.

They would at least have a new home as the conference realignment merry-go-round continues.