I was never a fan of “Little House on the Prairie” but I recall one episode where Charles and Mr. Edwards took a job transporting nitroglycerin in a wagon over rough dirt roads.
The nitroglycerin was unstable and the two pioneers had to be extremely careful not to jar their load. While one man drove the wagon the other would walk in front and smooth the way by filling in holes and removing rocks. Their pace was slow but steady and eventually they reached their destination without incident.
FSU’s journey to the Big 12 is more like that methodical wagon ride with load of unstable high-explosives.
Moving from one athletic conference to another is complicated. Legal issues must be worked out and budgets prepared. Boosters need to be contacted and asked to increase their donations to make up for lost revenue during the transition and other issues to numerous to mention must be properly dealt with before any announcements are made.
FSU isn’t in a position to make any announcement other than to deny interest in the Big 12; and more than likely that’s just what they will do during their Board of Trustee meetings today and tomorrow.
They will make a statement denying interest in the Big 12 and then continue to work on navigating their way out of the conference in private.
The Board of Trustee will certainly discuss the Big 12 and they’re likely to authorize president Eric Barron to open formal talks with the conference, but we’ll not hear FSU acknowledge any decision.
Before you panic keep this in mind:
Before you panic keep this in mind:
- The Big 12 has not had a formal vote on FSU or Clemson;
- FSU will not withdraw from the ACC until they have that vote has taken place;
- a formal vote on FSU can’t take place until FSU is ready and they’re not ready.
No offense to Randy Spetman but he’s not in control of the Florida State athletic department and the vacuum in leadership is slowing down the process.
FSU's Boosters, their Board of Trustees and Jimbo Fisher are running the show in place of the figurehead Spetman--- that’s too many cooks in the kitchen.
So what does this mean?
FSU is leaving the ACC for the Big 12. They money at stake, between $6 - $9 million per year, is simply too great for Barron to ignore.
It’s a simple business decision made easier by a glance at the balance sheet.
Barron is also being heavily pressured to make the move by Jimbo Fisher.
Fisher’s chirping about money to keep the facilities on par with FSU’s SEC neighbors and the funds to keep his coaching staff intact are being heard loud and clear in the president’s office -- especially when board members and boosters are echoing those same sentiments.
The move will happen.
The question is when.
FSU maybe able to pull the administrative rabbit out of the hat and get this done in time to play Big 12 football in 2013 or they may not.
They may follow the Texas A&M model.
The problem is that no one, including FSU, knows what course they will take.
They need Charles and Mr. Edwards to smooth the road to the Big 12 for them.
The problem is that no one, including FSU, knows what course they will take.
They need Charles and Mr. Edwards to smooth the road to the Big 12 for them.
Great piece. One question, did you read the Forbes article about the third tier rights and the ACC deal. In the article it is mentioned that Swofford may have left money on the deal to help Raycom, a North Carolina network, and a VP at the network is Swofford's son (not sure if the son was also involved in the deal, but it read that way.) That sounds like a possible breach of fiduciary duty, although it probably will be hard to prove. Anyway is that part of the deal causing a lot of this bad blood? Is it likely Clemson and FSU will consider a law suit or threat of one in some sort of settlement to lower the exit fees? Is this Raycom thing another reason the ACC is holding off giving out details of the deal?
ReplyDeleteHere is a link to the article you mentioned. Good find.
Deletehttp://www.forbes.com/sites/chrissmith/2012/06/04/the-accs-third-tier-rights-and-why-theyre-killing-the-conference/
Barron has already made it clear he will ignore it and believes that Florida State will lose money by going to the Big 12. If it's up to Barron, realignment is dead and Florida State isn't going to go anywhere. The one move to get Florida State to the Big 12 is for the Board of Trustees to fire Barron, because Barron doesn't want the Seminoles to be anywhere but the ACC.
ReplyDeleteThe move will not happen. If you look at the facts logically, Florida State to the Big 12 should be as dead as the dodo.
Dan. Stop thinking with your heart and start thinking with your head, or maybe wallet. FSU (and Clemson) have people who can read a balance sheet and interpret contracts. If FSU stays in the ACC they will be turning down between $6-$9 million each year they could have had in the Big 12. It's a simple business decision that Barron will make on his own or the BoT will make for him.
DeleteAnd I'm not sure what happened to your first comment but the new Champions Bowl between the Big 12 and SEC is owned by those two conferences. If their champion is in the playoffs the next Big 12 or SEC team in their respective conference standings gets the spot. The ACC can not play in that bowl ever.
It looks like the best the ACC can do is play the Big East or CUSA champion in the Orange Bowl or take the 3rd or lower teams from the Big 12 or ACC. Does that sound like the ACC is on equal footing with the Big 12?
Actually, I am thinking with my head, I don't have a team in this fight. But the FSU board of trustees' meeting today revealed that the new ACC contract eliminated the budget shortfall and the Seminoles are now on solid financial footing. That means the reason to leave the Big 12 just disappeared.
DeleteFurther, there will be no action taken on realignment today and the board of trustees plans to extend Barron's contract. If they do, goodbye FSU-to-the-Big 12.
The Champions Bowl is nothing more than the new Cotton Bowl. Why would the ACC want to play in it? That bowl will feature the runners-up in both conferences, similar to the Cotton Bowl today, because in most years, both leagues' champions will be in the playoff. If the bowl ever features a league champion, that means the playoff had a spot filled by the ACC. What matters is the playoff, not the bowls.
You need to stop thinking with your heart and start thinking with your head. As a West Virginia fan, you obviously want more teams in your league that aren't so far from Morgantown, but they aren't going to come from the ACC. There's zero substance to your position.
Dan:
DeleteThe ACC contract had some additional money because it had two teams in the BCS. That's a once in a lifetime occurrence not to happen again as VPI scheduled their way into the BCS game.
Did you not read my post?
"FSU isn’t in a position to make any announcement other than to deny interest in the Big 12; and more than likely that’s just what they will do during their Board of Trustee meetings today and tomorrow."
I was told to expect a denial but that didn't come. Nothing was said today that worries me one iota.
Then you're ignoring facts. Barron has zero desire to leave the ACC, the Seminoles have their budget problem solved and the board of trustees is likely to extend Barron's contract. With those three facts in place, there is only one logical conclusion: Florida State to the Big 12 is dead.
DeleteThere's also a fourth fact: Texas doesn't want the league to expand.
You can kid yourself if you want, but you are silly to do so. Oh and Barron did that because he has his agenda, but it is not over. If anything logic tells you the Big 12 is the better play. Oh and you are full of it. Where has Barron dropped the Raycom thing, if it is true??? If he did, and the story is true, I call into question Barron's ethics, and wonder if he lined his pockets. What Swofford did is out right criminal, if Forbes was correct!
ReplyDelete