Make that 7 ACC teams... but you get the idea.***

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Ultimately, ESPN is simply asking for 7 better games on

Aug 16, 2016, 11:26 AM

ACC fields annually with either option. That's it. 7 games.

We could easily accomplish this by staying at 8 games and ditching divisions, which forces 14 annual totally non-geographic, non-competitive games on the league. While these would not necessarily be replaced, they would be offset in equal numbers by far more compelling games that now happen only once every six years via the division structure.

So, half of the 14 dog poop games could be replaced annually by half of 14 quality games that can't be played annually now - there's the 7 games ESPN is looking for without harming any program, its fan base, or the league's national interest in the process.

On top of that, at 8 games, this allows the SEC 4 to continue to schedule top end Power 5 in an unfettered fashion as they do now, good for those programs and great for the league overall as it adds quality OOC early season network inventory outside of the league's footprint. All league teams benefit from that, but it's exactly what they would be voting to eliminate if they simply kept divisions like they are and added a 9th game.

So with 3-4 Power 5 being scheduled annually by the SEC 4, and no divisions, we're already at 9 better league network games. 9 > 7, and we still have ten more ACC teams left to try and fit in a few extra Power 5's. At the end of the day, this is more of a 8 + 1.5, and with Notre Dame's games added into the mix, that's entirely reachable. The SEC 4 already put the league more than half the way to that number.

Realistically, if we ditched divisions (3 annual rival games protected), and kept the status quo on 8 and existing Power 5 scheduling, we would surpass ESPN's mandate without actually having to change a single other element.

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NC State hasn't played two (2) Power Five non-conference teams in a season since 2003 - to put that in perspective, Chuck Amato was the head coach and Phillip Rivers was the quarterback.

Duke is 14-2 in non-conference games since 2012, but only three (3) of those games were against Power Five opponents (the Devils were 1-2).

And while North Carolina is being praised for scheduling up [the Heels were the only team in the triangle to play two (2) Power Five opponents last season - South Carolina and Illinois], the article neglects to mention their remaining non conference opponents were both Division 1AA teams - and that the 'Heels will play two (2) 1-AA teams again this season.

However, using the ESPN definition of Power Five + Notre Dame, six (6) of the ACC's member institutions will play two (2) Power Five non conference teams this year: Clemson, Duke (Northwestern, Notre Dame), Florida State (Ole Miss, Florida), Georgia Tech (Vanderbilt, Georgia), Pittsburgh (Penn State, Oklahoma State), North Carolina (Georgia, Illinois) and Virginia Tech (Tennessee and Notre Dame).

Additionally, it should be noted that Louisville will play a nationally ranked Houston team, while AAC teams make a total of eight (8) appearances on 2016 ACC schedules.

Interesting read on the proposed ACC 9+1 model.....

I like how they admit that the ESPN deal wouldn't have

Re: Interesting read on the proposed ACC 9+1 model.....

Ultimately, ESPN is simply asking for 7 better games on

You have to have divisions for a championship game.

This option was on its way to passage earlier this year

Re: This option was on its way to passage earlier this year

Hard to say, but if you look at the list of annual ACC dud

Re: Hard to say, but if you look at the list of annual ACC dud

That was before the ruling on deregulation was made.

It's not either / or. The opportunity still remains - it

There are some really sad statistics in there...

So how many SEC teams do 8+2?***

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