The ACC is fortunate it does not have an honor code--such a restriction could have its recent actions amount to a violation faster than you can say "Bloomberg." However, I must depart from my esteemed colleague's complete distaste for the idea of expansion. Although the ACC and its members may be thieves in the night, the addition of Boston College and Syracuse along with the crown jewel, Miami, is a steal of a deal for the ACC.
For example, the new twelve-member ACC would not only see a dramatic improvement in football but also in basketball, baseball, and lacrosse (just to name a few). The addition of perennial title-contender Miami makes the ACC as respectable a football conference as any other in the nation.Miami (currently in the College World Series) will also add more credibility and depth to ACC baseball. Similarly, the addition of defending national champion Syracuse further strengthens the ACC as a basketball conference while at the same time providing additional depth and talent for ACC lacrosse.
The newly expanded ACC would provide three new markets and audiences for the ACC to grow. The addition of Boston, New York, and Miami to current bases in Washington, D.C., Charlotte, and Atlanta gives the ACC a foothold across the entire Atlantic seaboard. This will not only help marketing and merchandise but also improve recruiting. Virginia football coach Al Groh must be drooling over the prospect of Southern Florida becoming a legitimate recruiting venue.
The two main criticisms of expansion--that it hurts tradition and is completely motivated by greed--are both presented by my colleague. Although I sympathize with those worried that Florida State may not be able to play Clemson twice a year and Georgia Tech may not be able to host Maryland annually, I find it quite ironic that strict adherence to and nostalgia for tradition should prevent or inhibit obvious improvement and progress.
Over a decade ago, the ACC sacrificed tradition and expanded from eight to nine teams when it invited football giant Florida State to join the basketball-focused conference. It did so because it put the ACC on the map for football. The new expansion would make ACC football the compass by which everyone else is compared.
Although my colleague disparages the ACC for its apparent greed, he alludes to the fact that it seems equally possible the ACC schools could lose money during the first few years post-expansion. Although new television contracts (with new markets now tied to the ACC) could provide increased revenues, the move should not be vilified simply because it could eventually lead to a financial boon or windfall. Rather, increased revenues for ACC athletic departments means that smaller programs--such as golf and tennis--can be better supported. Furthermore, more revenue means less reliance on the institution for funding, which in turn could mean more support for academic projects.
Expansion makes sense economically and athletically; moreover, it's as much about survival as anything. As the NCAA landscape moves closer to a scene dominated by super-conferences (the SEC, Big 12, and Big 10/11 are already there), a decision by the ACC to stand pat and stagnant and not expand could lead to the result that now looms for the Big East: extinction.
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