ESPN reporter reveals potential cost of Florida State leaving the ACC

Florida State is not too happy with the ACC right now. The conference is well behind the Big Ten and SEC when it comes to revenue, with athletic director Michael Alford claiming something needs to change in a recent article with ESPN. And falling behind in the arms race between Power Five conferences is the last thing you want to do in college athletics.

With today’s age of conference realignment, you cannot expect anything out of the blue. We don’t know if the Big Ten or SEC will continue expanding but if they do, you would have to assume Florida State would be a key target. Unfortunately, the Seminoles would be facing a costly price tag if they plan on leaving the ACC in the near future.

“The starting point for this is about $120 million,” ESPN’s David Hale said during an appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show. “That’s the number Michael Alford and the general counsel at Florida State gave to the Board of Trustees gave last week. What that number constitutes is just the exit fee. Which is three years, three times annual revenue. So, roughly around $120 million we’d be talking if they were to do it this year.”

From a comparison standpoint, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said $50 million was the price tag to leave the Big 12 a year early in favor of the SEC. Oklahoma paid the same amount, giving the Big 12 a total of $100 million. Florida State would pay around $10 million less than Texas/Oklahoma if there was just one year remaining.

However, the exit fee is not the only thing preventing Alford from making the call. The ACC Grant of Rights is currently keeping the conference together. Hale explains due to the GOR, Florida State would have no value to other leagues if they were available on the open market.

“It’s a contractual agreement that each team has made with the ACC through the year 2036 that essentially says, ‘the ACC owns our media rights until that time,'” Hale said. “So, Florida State could leave. They just couldn’t earn any media income.

“They wouldn’t be able to broadcast games if the ACC didn’t want them to. That essentially makes them not valuable to any other league. Why would the SEC or Big Ten want Florida State if their games can’t be on TV.”

Hale went on to say the process would be “painful” for Florida State, or others, to get out of the ACC and the Grant of Rights. There would be legal battles as the ACC would be holding out on letting anyone leave the conference. A quick exit fee would be just the beginning for Alford and the Seminoles.