ESPN insider weighs FSU potential conference landing spots after lawsuit vs. ACC

The drama surrounding the Florida State Seminoles has many wondering if they could end up in a new conference for 2024.

On Friday, the next step in the battle between the Seminoles and the Atlantic Coast Conference took place, as news broke regarding the Seminoles’ voting unanimously on Friday to challenge the ACC Grant of Rights.

If Florida State is successful in their lawsuit against the ACC, and the conference won’t let them go without a fight, the Seminoles could be free to go wherever they please.

With that in mind, ESPN’s Andrea Adelson joined College Football Live to explain her belief that the Big Ten would be the program’s desired destination.

“I can tell you one place they’re not going to go, and that’s independent,” Adelson proclaimed. “It’s not just financially feasible for Florida State to be an independent. So scratch that off that list. That really leaves two main options, the Big Ten or the SEC. I think the Florida State folks would be leaning towards the Big Ten, because they can get the Big Ten into the State of Florida. It’s a market in the South that they don’t have yet. Yeah, they’ve got the East Coast and the West Coast, but the don’t have the South. (FSU President) Richard McCullough came from Harvard. He’s working really hard to get AAU designation, which I think just about every Big Ten school has. That’s extremely important to him. They want to be able to do that, if that can make them more attractive to the Big Ten. But again, there’s no invitation.

“Would they say no to the SEC? Obviously not. But I think because the SEC already has Florida, they feel like working the Big Ten could potentially be the best option for their future.”

Alas, it’s telling that Adelson remarked Florida State has their focus on the Big Ten, and if the SEC beckoned them, it’d be tough to deny, but could the Big 12 swoop in? If the courts are able to figure things out in a swift manner, she mentioned that it’s possible.

“But if things work out in Florida State’s favor here. If the judge they found in Leon County, Florida, and they get declaratory judgement from this judge, they’re essentially free to leave the ACC at the end of this year. They’ve back-dated their withdrawal date to Aug. 14, 2023. In that case, maybe there’s a landing spot in the Big 12,” Adelson added. “That’s a lot more of a long shot, because I don’t think anybody is expecting this to be resolved within the next six months, but certainly that’s an option, based on the way that Florida State has written their lawsuit.”

As you can tell, there’s a ton of moving parts at the moment, and it could be awhile before we receive clarity, but Florida State and the ACC have a long road to walk before we truly find out what the future holds for them both.