Why Clemson struck now by filing lawsuit against ACC

Clemson has joined Florida State in filing a lawsuit against the ACC, being the first step toward leaving the conference. Both programs are fighting against the ACC’s Grant of Rights, a document currently keeping the Tigers and Seminoles tied down. The GOR binds the league, schools, and broadcast partners, through 2036.

On3’s Pete Nakos explains why the time was now for Clemson to file the lawsuit. He believes they have been working on it for a few months, and the date is not random. Clemson felt “comfortable” in Nakos’ eyes moving forward after doing their research and seeing what Florida State is doing.

“They have been working on this for months,” Nakos said during Wednesday’s episode of Andy Staples On3. “I don’t think it was exactly like ‘Hey, this happens so now we need to file the lawsuit.’ I think they did their due diligence and they got to the point where they felt very comfortable moving very forward with this.”

In a time where conference realignment has been rampant, the ACC has been relatively quiet. Bringing Cal, Stanford, and SMU on was noteworthy but does not spark as much interest compared to the Big Ten or SEC’s additions.

Commissioner Jim Phillips is fighting to keep the ACC alive but may not want the fight to occur in the courtroom. With how powerless the NCAA has become in recent months, there is a good chance Florida State and Clemson could wind up winners. Finding a way to settle out of court may be in the ACC’s best interest.

“The NCAA is as powerless as ever with these preliminary junctions with the transfer portal and NIL. I think the college sports landscape lends itself to Clemson and Florida State winning these lawsuits. I think the pressure is bigger than ever against the ACC where the ACC will probably want to settle at some point rather than see how this plays out in court.

“Because in my opinion and some attorneys I’ve talked to, I think that there is an opinion that Florida State and Clemson probably could win in the court. And I don’t think that’s something the ACC wants to see play out.”

Clemson is looking to be set free from the Grant of Rights without a financial exit fee. Negotiating with other conferences (likely the Big Ten and SEC) is the school’s goal. Filing the lawsuit is just the beginning of the process.