Sources: FSU ponders ACC future after CFP snub

• Andrea Adelson, ESPN Elder WriterDec 19, 2023, 07:04 PM ET

  Close

  • ACC reporter.
  • Joined ESPN.com in 2010.
  • Graduate of the University of Florida.Florida State has

had renewed in-depth conversations about its long-term future in the ACC in recent weeks, sources informed ESPN, with talks reignited following the Seminoles’ omission from the College Football Playoff previously this month.That snub, which

happened after the Seminoles finished a best 12-0 regular-season record before winning the ACC national championship, outraged lots of at the university and among its board of trustees, essentially the final stroke after a year invested voicing their displeasure with the conference.The circumstance is expected to come to a head in the future and be

officially discussed quickly, sources indicated to ESPN. While there has been renewed discussion, no board of trustees meeting has been called.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated To be clear, Florida State is not leaving the ACC in the near term however is merely weighing its choices– a difficult task that also has come with nervousness among some involved in the talks.The Seminoles have actually not been shy about voicing their displeasure with the growing earnings gap between the ACC and other conferences; the method the

ACC disperses income; and the size of their share of the tv earnings pie, which they think ought to be larger based upon ratings and marketability.The shifting college landscape over the previous two years has just exacerbated those issues, as the ACC has fallen even more behind the SEC and the Big 10.

Florida State is not the only ACC school that has actually considered its choices. Seven universities– Florida State, Clemson, North Carolina, Miami, Virginia Tech, Virginia and NC State– had discussions about their long-term futures in the spring.During a board of trustees meeting in August, Florida State president Richard McCullough made it clear the school would “really seriously”think about leaving the league if things did not change.Any ACC school that desires

to leave the conference would need to challenge the grant of rights to be able to go out before joining another league. The grant of rights, which goes through 2036, gives the ACC control over media rights for its member schools– including the broadcast of games in all sports.In addition, any school that wishes to leave the ACC would have to pay an exit fee of 3 times the league’s operating budget, or approximately$ 120 million.ESPN’s Pete Thamel contributed to this report.