forums

MEGA Conference Realignment and lawsuits Megathread(Its still personal)

Advertisement
RightSaidFred said:
If ESPN doesn't renew its media rights agreement with the ACC, then there's a strong argument that the GOR extension would no longer be enforcable.

"WHEREAS the Conference is a party to a Multi-Media Agreement with ESPN... and WHEREAS the Conference has negotiated an Amended and Restated Multi-Media Agreement with ESPN.... and WHEREAS ESPN has informed the Conference that it will enter in to the Prospective Agreements only if each of the Member Institutions agrees to amend the Grant of Rights Agreement to extend the terms thereof...

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises set forth in this Amendement and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are acknowledged, the parties agree as follows.... the Original Grant Agreement is hereby amended by deleting the first sentence of the existing Section 5 in its entirety and substituting the following therefor: 'The Term of this Agreement shall begin on the Effective Date and shall continue until June 30, 2036'"


No Multi-Media agreement with ESPN => no more consideration => no more GOR as of 2027.

Now the exit penalty is still a thing. But those have historically been negotiated down and shouldn't hinder anyone from actually leaving.
Click to expand...
UM should file now, putting more pressure ON the ACC, also officially getting in line TO take a spot in the B10, and getting more official momentum going to potentially have the 8 votes to dissolve the ACC prior to July 1, 2024 when the Cal/StanSMU come aboard. ESPN isn't extending, the current media deal ends after the 2026 football season. UM needs to grow a pair of balls and officially enter the fray. There is no place to go but UP.
 
TheOriginalCane said:
OK, I'll play along.

WHAT IS THE STRATEGY?

Keep in mind, nothing that F$U or Clemson has done YET has (a) freed them from the ACC, (b) gotten them a public bid from the Big 10 or SEC, and/or (c) set the dollar amount of their exit fee(s).

Therefore, Miami has NOT benefited one iota from watching those two schools from the sidelines.

We would be better served by having three, four, seven, or eight schools all suing the ACC at one time from different jurisdictions. The ACC's collective head would explode. The member institutions would have to think twice about wasting a bunch of money to defend EIGHT lawsuits, and ESPN would know **** well that it doesn't need to exercise its option to extend the ACC.

And then the inevitable would happen. The entire conference would implode, and we would ALL be free with NO penalties at all.

Which will NOT happen if two teams leave. But WILL happen if more teams leave, especially the most attractive teams.
Click to expand...
Guess Whos Back Crypto GIF by DONUTs
 
Fluffhead said:
Counterpoint - Does having a wink-wink nudge-nudge landing spot impact that strategy? Let's say the B10 really is only taking two and it winds up being FSU/ND and the SEC isn't interested. Of course if we have a guaranteed landing spot then this should be a no-brainer and is fireable if it isn't. I, personally would still file, as I would rather be in the B12 long term than the ACC if the P2 are off the table.
Click to expand...
ND is remaining independent for a few more years at least. Minimum 4 ACC schools will move to the P2. Nobody knows "who / where" with any degree of certainty. Could be FSU +1 other to the B10. Everybody wants UNC. If we're lucky maybe UNC / Clemson end up in the SEC and FSU + Miami end up in the Big 10. Would hate the SEC to end up taking UNC paired with NcState out of political necessity, and the B10 takes FSU + Clemson. If only 4 go to the P2 then 4 would need to go to the B12 in order to have homes for the 8 to dissolve.

It was "rumored" that there ARE homes for 8 programs but "not everybody is in agreement with their potential deal". The B12 is going to be potentially more stable than a G5 backfilled ACC, but still, UM really needs to be in the P2. Hoping this all takes place ... soon.
 
Rickd said:
UM should file now, putting more pressure ON the ACC, also officially getting in line TO take a spot in the B10, and getting more official momentum going to potentially have the 8 votes to dissolve the ACC prior to July 1, 2024 when the Cal/StanSMU come aboard. ESPN isn't extending, the current media deal ends after the 2026 football season. UM needs to grow a pair of balls and officially enter the fray. There is no place to go but UP.
Click to expand...

I have a hack theory that either Miami or UNC will file on ACC media days in the summer. If the magnificent 7 are in cahoots, and if the thinking goes that you want to put maximum pressure on the ACC to force them to negotiate on favorable terms to you, then there's value in a drip-drip-drip chinese water torture strategy, staying constantly in the news cycle.

From that tinfoil perspective, it makes sense to have a new member of the magnificent 7 sue the ACC every couple of months, spreading out the pain for the ACC and increasing the news exposure. And it would be valuable to have someone sue them right during the ACC media days to cast a cloud on the whole event and steal the news cycle.

That would maximize the pressure, as opposed to having everyone sue at the same time and having the news forget about it after a couple months of boring legal fights.
 
Advertisement
RightSaidFred said:
I have a hack theory that either Miami or UNC will file on ACC media days in the summer. If the magnificent 7 are in cahoots, and if the thinking goes that you want to put maximum pressure on the ACC to force them to negotiate on favorable terms to you, then there's value in a drip-drip-drip chinese water torture strategy, staying constantly in the news cycle.

From that tinfoil perspective, it makes sense to have a new member of the magnificent 7 sue the ACC every couple of months, spreading out the pain for the ACC and increasing the news exposure. And it would be valuable to have someone sue them right during the ACC media days to cast a cloud on the whole event and steal the news cycle.

That would maximize the pressure, as opposed to having everyone sue at the same time and having the news forget about it after a couple months of boring legal fights.
Click to expand...
It is a LOT easier to simply have 8 schools to vote to dissolve the ACC ...then there is NOTHING to negotiate ... it is relatively clear sailing. No exit fee, no GOR, everybody agrees to play the 2024 schedule as is, and during the course of the year all find a new conference affiliation. Some might not be happy, but Wake Forest and BC will need to be in smaller regional conferences that actually reflect their viewership and TV following, they can't continue to be subsidized by major programs.
 
Rickd said:
It is a LOT easier to simply have 8 schools to vote to dissolve the ACC ...then there is NOTHING to negotiate ... it is relatively clear sailing. No exit fee, no GOR, everybody agrees to play the 2024 schedule as is, and during the course of the year all find a new conference affiliation. Some might not be happy, but Wake Forest and BC will need to be in smaller regional conferences that actually reflect their viewership and TV following, they can't continue to be subsidized by major programs.
Click to expand...

I have a hard time believing that's possible before February. I've never been a believer in that strategy.
 
Ispyin said:
Guess Whos Back Crypto GIF by DONUTs
Click to expand...
You would have thought that being out of action for a long sabbatical would have created a bit of rust and maybe a slow grind to full speed but NO....this break clearly invigorated and refocused the Sensei. He has sharpened his iron and is ready for anything anyone can throw at him. I feel for those who may unwittingly wander into his path.
 
Last edited:
Advertisement
Tony4Canes said:
I'm starting to hate today. April Fools.

Saw several tweet Wazzu & Oregon St to ACC.
Click to expand...
I mean seriously dude you should know better you’ve been reading this thread - and no that’s not remotely Possible to go about having happen right now
 
Advertisement
People want us to file suit because it would be a public signal and proof that we're taking some sort of action on the re-alignment issue. It's a comforting action, not one that would necessarily assist us (in this moment at least) in making our way to the P2.

We've certainly done things behind the scene (again, there are a very tight group of people who are running the show on this issue and they do not leak). However, I understand the impatience on this issue, especially when one of our biggest rivals is a bull in the china shop on this. If we filed suit against the ACC today, much of the complaint would be identical to FSU's. It wouldn't be surprising for such a case to be consolidated. What happens with that FSU case is important to us.

However, there's a few pathways to leaving this conference. A suit isn't a prerequisite to getting out of it and moving to the P2. Could we ultimately file a suit against the ACC? Sure, it can definitely happen. As things stand though, I'm not expecting it anytime soon.
 
Rickd said:
It is a LOT easier to simply have 8 schools to vote to dissolve the ACC ...then there is NOTHING to negotiate ... it is relatively clear sailing. No exit fee, no GOR, everybody agrees to play the 2024 schedule as is, and during the course of the year all find a new conference affiliation. Some might not be happy, but Wake Forest and BC will need to be in smaller regional conferences that actually reflect their viewership and TV following, they can't continue to be subsidized by major programs.
Click to expand...

It's probably not nearly as easy as it sounds. Again, I haven't seen the actual GOR, but from what we know it was basically copied directly from the Big 12's GOR, word for word. The Big 12 GOR (and likely the ACC GOR) have a catch 22 for voting for dissolution. Only "disinterested" parties are allowed to vote for dissolution. If a team wants to join another conference, it is considered an "interested" party and no longer gets a vote. So if you have 8 teams that have spots in other conferences, none of the 8 teams are allowed are allowed to vote for dissolution because they are "interested parties."

Ironically, if UM doesn't have a spot in the P2 and shows that through its actions like not filing a lawsuit against the ACC , it might be considered a "disinterested party" and get to keep its vote. But if the ACC did copy the Big 12 GOR as was reported years ago, then FSU and Clemson will not be allowed a vote.
 
Handsome Squidbum said:
It's probably not nearly as easy as it sounds. Again, I haven't seen the actual GOR, but from what we know it was basically copied directly from the Big 12's GOR, word for word. The Big 12 GOR (and likely the ACC GOR) have a catch 22 for voting for dissolution. Only "disinterested" parties are allowed to vote for dissolution. If a team wants to join another conference, it is considered an "interested" party and no longer gets a vote. So if you have 8 teams that have spots in other conferences, none of the 8 teams are allowed are allowed to vote for dissolution because they are "interested parties."

Ironically, if UM doesn't have a spot in the P2 and shows that through its actions like not filing a lawsuit against the ACC , it might be considered a "disinterested party" and get to keep its vote. But if the ACC did copy the Big 12 GOR as was reported years ago, then FSU and Clemson will not be allowed a vote.
Click to expand...
As long as a program hasn't provided notice that they are leaving they have a right to vote on substantive matters. Clemson and FSU can certainly vote along with 6 others to dissolve the ACC. Also, it wouldn't be in the GOR, those terms would have to be in the conference bylaws. The ACC GOR has been presented on this forum several times and is a very simple document.
 
Advertisement
Fluffhead said:
Counterpoint - Does having a wink-wink nudge-nudge landing spot impact that strategy? Let's say the B10 really is only taking two and it winds up being FSU/ND and the SEC isn't interested. Of course if we have a guaranteed landing spot then this should be a no-brainer and is fireable if it isn't. I, personally would still file, as I would rather be in the B12 long term than the ACC if the P2 are off the table.
Click to expand...


I do not believe it has an impact, and I'll tell you why.

First, if F$U-Clemson leave, it's highly unlikely for ESPN to re-up. So I would argue that being COMPLETELY free, even if it means that a new "smaller" ACC has to go out on its own, is better than having "big daddy ACC" continuing to "own our rights" and shopping us around to, oh, I don't know, RAYCOM...

Second, I would argue that even in a "we're only taking 2" Big 10 scenario, the AVAILABILITY of Miami and others might force the issue. For instance, it might "only" be 2 now that F$U and Clemson are the only ones suing (and ND is big enough to do whatever the **** they want), but it might become 4 or 6 once there are some valuable chips on the table.

I had a similar conversation with some lawyers/accountants/tax people about 15 years ago when there were only 3 remaining NON-ISC/NON-SMI speedways still owned by other entities. Because of the way NASCAR race dates were awarded (and held), I'm like "we have to win 2 out of the next 3". At a certain point, you have to overpay/over-offer when the last available chips are up for grabs.

The game is going to be over soon, and we're still watching everyone else play their hands...
 
Last edited:
Advertisement
Back
Top