Pitt and Syracuse Could Be 2 More Mouths for ACC to Feed

Everyone knows the latest version of conference realignment is driven by football.  Football brings in the big television money even in a conference like the ACC, where basketball has been its trademark for so many years.

Now the ACC is expanding to 14 teams with the addition of Pittsburgh and Syracuse.  In 27 months, or whenever the Big East lets Pitt and Syracuse out of their commitments, it will be the largest football conference in the BCS.

In 27 months the ACC will have at least two more mouths to feed—two more ways to slice the revenue pie.

The ACC, whose football championship game usually comes and goes with a whisper, now adds two more traditionally rich football programs in Pitt and Syracuse.

In 1959  Ernie Davis' Syracuse team won a national championship.  Tony Dorsett's Pitt team won a national championship in 1976. 

Syracuse won their national championship with a win over Texas in the Cotton Bowl and Pitt won theirs when they defeated Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR ME LATELY?

In 2010 Syracuse finished 8-5.  Their record included wins over Akron, FCS Colgate, FCS Maine, and a disputed win over Kansas State in the first ever Pinstripe Bowl.

Last year was Syracuse's first winning season in nine years.

With the rise of other Northeastern football programs at UConn, Rutgers, and even Buffalo, recruiting had fallen off at Syracuse. 

Rumors of the Carrier Dome's failing construction didn't help.

With the hire of former Syracuse player Doug Marrone as coach, the Orange have hopes of regaining the glory they once enjoyed.

Pitt will enter the ACC with better credentials than Syracuse; the Panthers have had three winning seasons in the last six years.

Pitt reached a BCS game in 2004 and were beaten soundly by an undefeated Utah team 35-7.

And the Panthers have struggled over the recent years against arch-rival West Virginia. They've only beaten the Mountaineers six times in the last 20 years.

So what is the ACC getting here besides two once great programs that currently have trouble selling out their buildings?  What are they getting besides two more mouths to feed?

Yes, they are getting two top-flight basketball programs that will make things exciting on week nights but won't do much for hopes of a big television contract.

And what the ACC is getting more than anything with the addition of these two Big East mainstays is a sense of security. 

ACC Commissioner John Swofford has decided that going to 14 teams is the best way to provide stability in case The SEC decides to make a play for FSU, Clemson, or anyone else from his conference.

Give him credit for upping the exit fee to $20 million.  This will also help keep things stable.

The Big Ten and the Pac-12 have taken different approaches.  They both decided to cut off membership at 12 teams.

It appears they're happy with two less mouths to feed. 

The Big Ten makes a huge profit for all their members with the help of the Big Ten Network.

The Pac-12 doesn't make Big Ten-money and there is a feeling that if they can persuade Texas and Oklahoma to join, they'll be willing to expand in the future.

But who wouldn't want a Texas or an Oklahoma?   They carry a lot more weight than a Pittsburgh or a Syracuse.