CHARLOTTE – Conference realignment palooza hit college football again this summer, and with it arrived fears for the health of each league not named the Big Ten or SEC.
The national media and fans, both terrified and indifferent, shoveled dirt on the other three members of the Power 5, including the ACC. Of course, a thorough lack of understanding regarding the Grant of Rights each of the 15 member institutions signed several years ago fueled much of the speculation, but concerns about the health and viability of the ACC over the long term is real enough that it must be addressed. And is.
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips didn’t publicly do much to infuse optimism to those interested in seeing the 69-year-old league forge into the future armed with strength and sustainability. His answers to questions at the annual ACC Kickoff this past week didn’t generate positive headlines or vibes. Whether or not he’s got something cooking behind the scenes few people know.
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Regardless, the health of college football is at stake, North Carolina Coach Mack Brown says, which obviously includes the ACC.
“My fear is if we go to a two-mega conference, NFL-type situation, and then your playoff becomes 16 teams, you’re the NFL,” he said at the ACC Kickoff. “And then college football around it has dropped.”
Texas and Oklahoma announced last summer intentions on joining the SEC, and in June UCLA and Southern Cal altered the landscape by announcing they are headed to the Big Ten. With it, projections for the demise of the other leagues ensued.
Two super conferences, as Brown noted, are coming. But Brown would like to see this train stop and take a breath. Two super leagues could adversely affect the rest of the sport, if not kill it entirely.
“I don’t think it’s best for college football to have two mega conferences, because there are so many great programs that will not be able to compete at the same level they are now,” Brown said. “And when that happens, their fans are going to be really disappointed and they’re going to lose revenue.
“And it will hurt football all the way to the FCS and Division II and Division III. And to me, that’s not what we need.”
Two 20-team leagues pretty much facing each other means someone must be the Detroit Lions. Programs that celebrate seven-win seasons and .com bowls now would regularly try selling their alumni on the financial virtues of being 2-10 and 3-9 each year nestled at or near the bottom of super conferences.
The Mississippi States and Kansas States need healthy FCS and G5 programs to give balance to their schedules and allow for six and seven-win seasons donors will view as minimally acceptable. They'll then keep doling out cash. Brown, who arrived for his second stint in Chapel Hill in 2018, guides a program that has resided in a similar realm for the last two decades.
UNC needs a broad healthy college football landscape as much as any program. Actually, everyone does, Brown says.
“I really like college football as it is, understanding it’s got to grow, understanding there’s got to be changes,” he said. “But I’m afraid we’ve got too many changes that weren’t well thought through, and therefore we’re seeing the consequences of some of those.”
Whatever those changes are, nobody knows for certain at this time. But Carolina’s coach hopes they aren’t too drastic. There is entirely too much to lose for the gain of a few.
