College Football Analyst Explains Major Downside to New Changes in the ACC

Clemson and Florida State have reached a settlement with the ACC, allowing them to remain in the conference for the foreseeable future, as the Grant of Rights remains in place until 2036. The agreement resulted from an important change in the league's revenue distribution system, which will now reward the programs with the most viewership.

Apparently, Clemson and Florida State would benefit from this, but other programs, such as North Carolina and Miami, will surely also reap the rewards. Someone who doesn't believe this will be a permanent solution is ESPN's Greg McElroy, who on Friday brought up a comparison to a historical example to make his point:

"We have seen this model fail before. This happened to the Big 12. Remember when Texas went in there and said, 'Hey, this is what we want. We're going to go to the Pac-12 unless you give us uneven revenue distribution. We want the rights to launch the Longhorn Network, all these other things' Texas did this in the Big 12, and what did that lead to? It led to Texas A&M and Missouri leaving the league to join the SEC" Said McElroy at 5:30 of the video above

It seems that McElroy is insinuating that all this effort to accommodate the Tigers and Seminoles might ultimately backfire and cause other schools to want to leave. While the starting exit fee for the league is $165 million, it does drop by $18 million annually until it levels off at $75 million in 2030. Would that be low enough for some schools to break away?

ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips on the agreement with Clemson and Florida State

Shortly after the agreement was announced, ACC commissioner Jim Phillips released a statement praising the league and everyone involved in the negotiations:

"Today's resolution begins the next chapter of this storied league and further solidifies the ACC as a premier conference, as we look ahead to our collective long-term future, I want to express my deepest appreciation to the ACC Board of Directors for its ongoing leadership, patience and dedication throughout this process. The league has competed at the highest level for more than 70 years and this new structure demonstrates the ACC embracing innovation and further incentivizing our membership based on competition and viewership results. "

Phillips also highlighted the importance of the ACC's agreement with ESPN for the financial prosperity of the conference. Similar statements were released by Clemson's and Florida State's athletic directors, Graham Neff and Michael Alford, who praised the league's decision and highlighted their schools' links to it.