ACC Media Days will begin on Monday morning, marking yet another week of headline-worthy news. Rumors of realignment and defection have been swirling in recent weeks, as Florida State and Clemson have been looking for any way they can get out of their current situation.
Through Big 12 and SEC Media Days in recent weeks, the topic of realignment has come up on multiple occasions, with the ACC being the centered target in the next “wave” of action. So, with that being said, one would think that the ACC’s primary focus would be portraying a strong sense of unity among its members, right?
Well, that doesn’t appear to be the route they’re taking, at least not by the looks of their tagline at media days. Instead of “17 Strong,” or something that implies a strong foundation or future, the ACC decided to go with perhaps the weirdest flex ever.
Welcome to 2024 ACC Football Media Days, home to the “Toughest Non-Conference Schedule in the Country.”
That doesn’t exactly scream confidence, does it?
With Cal, Stanford, and SMU all entering the league this year, the ACC will have 17 members in 2024 and beyond. They’ll hope to keep it that way, too, despite Florida State and Clemson trying to wiggle out of an ironclad Grant of Rights, which has the conference locked up until 2036; that is unless the schools are ready to fork over a $130 million exit fee.
According to a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the ACC doesn’t expect Florida State or Clemson to notify them of plans to leave the conference by the deadline in mid-August, meaning that the Noles and Tigers will likely stick around through the 2025-26 seasons. However, if we’ve learned anything from realignment to this point, it’s that expectations are one thing, and reality might be a completely different story.
