Florida State president calls for time to ‘very seriously consider leaving the ACC’

The screws of conference realignment seem to once again be turning, now with Florida State signaling that the Seminoles are not long for the Atlantic Coast Conference. While the stated goal would be to stay in the ACC, FSU administrators and trustees seem to think that goal isn’t attainable any more.

At a board meeting on Wednesday, Florida State University president Rick McCullough spelled out the situation from where Florida State sits. And it’s not a pretty picture for the ACC, calling things an “existential crisis” for Florida State.

“Our goal would be to stay in the ACC. But staying in the ACC under the current situation is hard for us to figure out how we remain competitive. Unless there were a major change in the revenue distribution within the conference. I believe FSU will, at some point, have to very seriously consider leaving the ACC unless there is a radical change to the revenue distribution,” McCullough said.

The noise from Florida State about bailing from the ACC comes the same afternoon that it was reported that the Big Ten Conference is reportedly considering pursuing a quartet of Pac-12 Conference schools should Arizona choose to leave the league.

And to some trustees, it seems to be more than noise. Drew Weatherford, formerly a Florida State quarterback and current trustee, made it pretty plain that he thinks the Seminoles’ days in the ACC are numbered.

“It’s not a matter of if we leave, in my opinion. It’s a matter of who and when we leave. Not everyone may agree with that, but I feel really strongly about it,” Weatherford said.

The logical landing spot for Florida State were it to leave the ACC would likely be the Southeastern Conference, should that league accept them. However, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey wasn’t particularly gung-ho about more realignment additions for his league when discussing the subject in July.

With a team already in Florida, many suspect the SEC would look to add teams in states and media markets where they do not already have a presence. However, it remains to be seen how the SEC would act if the Seminoles find (or pay) a way out of the ACC Grant of Rights.

And as for the ACC’s Grant of Rights — i.e., the schools collectively signing over their media rights to the conference — they have been deemed to be ironclad or close too. However, the Florida State administration seems to think there is a pathway out — it might just be paying out the nose.

Either way, Florida State would be willing to take on the role of villain and throw a wrench into the league and they try to get out from under a widening revenue gap with the SEC and Big 10 Conferences.