Honestly, I could only think of one thing when I read this:
The ACC had a record revenue year in fiscal year 2021. Still, the league could find itself falling farther behind the SEC and Big Ten in the future as media rights deals come on the horizon — and Miami athletic director Dan Radakovich talked about that.
Radakovich saw the ACC grow during his time at Clemson before arriving at Miami this offseason. In fiscal year 2021, the ACC brought in $578.3 million, which was an $82 million increase from the previous fiscal year. But the SEC led the way with $833 million in revenue and the Big Ten was next at $679.8 million. On top of that, the Big Ten is reportedly on the verge of a massive media rights deal worth nearly $1 billion, which would likely increase that number even more.
That was all part of the question to Radakovich on the ESPN College Football Podcast, and he shared an honest answer with hosts Adam Rittenberg and David Hale.
“Yes, from an answer perspective. Yes. … We’re concerned,” Radakovich said. “It could be a threat. This is why we have commissioners and people in our home office in Greensboro, to be able to help work on that. The athletic directors talk about it all the time. ‘What can we do to help further our cause?’ There are contracts in place, there are rights agreements in place that are there and those contracts have been made. It’s going to be different.
“But I’m looking forward to continuing the conversation to see how we can impact that and possibly change it because if you just take the soliloquy that you just mentioned, we’re going to be a little bit behind the eight-ball as it relates to dollars. How you make that up, that reverts back to each individual campus and decisions that are made on each one of our campuses. We’ll continue to see how that works, but it’s certainly an everyday issue for Commissioner [Jim] Phillips and our staff in Greensboro.”
“Hello? SEC? How soon can you get us out of this conference?”
Get The Picture 
‘U” take ’em, we don’t want ’em.
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Why would the SEC take Miami? They add very few eyeballs over what Florida gives them in South Florida. No need to give them the money to upgrade their program when the SEC power programs are already cleaning up on South Florida talent.
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I can’t fathom a situation where the SEC would take Miami unless it was some sort of larger conference merger situation. The SEC already has its own smallish private school that doesn’t add much in the way of football.
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He all but said he is looking for a pathway out of the ACC. Dang.
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Aren’t they all in this media rights deal that practically makes it impossible for any of them to leave? Who knew that adding Boston College, Syracuse and Pitt would be a drag on their conference for football? Anyone with a brain.
Miami has been a middling program. Florida State has fallen off a cliff (the Travis Hunter thing was pretty damning for them). Virginia Tech has been a perennial disappointment since Beamer Ball’s retirement (and even before then). Neither UNC nor NC State can get it together to be a real thorn in Clemson’s side. UVA (sorry, Senator) is an average program
There’s a reason I call it the Almost Competitive Conference.
All of this is why the ACC is part of the Alliance … they need to get Notre Dame in as a full football member to reopen their media deal. Driving playoff expansion in a direction that makes it difficult for ND to remain independent is their only hope.
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Help us Notre Dame, you’re our only hope…
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LSUfreek (or someone else) should do video edit with Phillips as Princess Leia and Swarbrick as Obi-Wan.
What the ACC has to be concerned about is whether their conference is destined to be Alderaan in the college football wars.
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Yeah, I’m just surprised he said it out loud in public. I think the ACC is going to have a Big12 moment where a couple of the top teams leave, and the rest of the conference has to come to terms with their worth.
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That’s the problem the top teams have. I think the media rights exit fee is so steep that it’s likely cost-prohibitive. Clemson, Florida State, Miami and UNC in particular likely don’t have the financial wherewithal to pay the exit fee. UNC is possibly the only ACC brand that would add significant value to a conference’s (especially the SEC) TV package. Yes, I said Clemson doesn’t move the needle and wouldn’t be worth poaching by the SEC.
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This is where I don’t understand the power dynamic between a conference commissioner and universities AD’s.
The ACC commish (in my mind) should be tanning the hide’s of these AD’s to get their shit together and produce good football like they used to. MIA and FSU are both missing in action. If the school’s want the money they gotta produce a better media product.
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I agree that UNC is the best ACC brand for value to a TV package for a conference like the B1G or SEC. But I don’t foresee UNC agreeing to a move to the SEC with far fewer schools that are AAU member institutions. A lot of those schools in the ACC (and B1G) are quite proud of their academic standards and reputations.
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Milton, I don’t think UNC would leave without NC State and/or Duke to go with them. I’m just saying UNC is the only brand that would move the needle while maintaining an SEC footprint.
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Except there’s not “a couple” of top teams.
There is Clemmons and then everyone else, and Clemmons is likely in decline.
The ACC should just be happy they have great basketball.
And if the SEC is ever going to take a school from the ACC it should be North Carolina.
Florida isn’t about to let another sunshine team in…they’re having enough recruiting problems as things are.
And I wouldn’t want Clemson in because I hate ’em too much and that’s a good enough reason for me.
Wish the SEC would send Texas a letter saying, “so sorry, we’ve changed our minds” and take North Carolina in instead.
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Pittsburgh has been good in the past. I still hurt from the Marino pass to TE John Brown.
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True … but Pitt as a TV brand isn’t valuable in today’s world. If you want eyeballs in Pennsylvania, you want Ped State.
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That’s about enough of that shit (discussing Pennsylvania schools joining the SEC). 😬
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He forgot to mention all that sweeet gtu money that pours in, particularly on Thursday nights.
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Mr Sankey we have clampson on line 1, da U on line 2, and chief seminole on line3…
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“…reverts back…” Grrrrrrrr
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Apparently FSU has really let their facilities get behind and have relatively shallow capital dollars and sources.
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Florida and Auburn (and Georgia to a lesser degree) would be crazy to let FSU even apply.
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Shorter Dan: “Hey Jim…get me more money or we’re out of here!”
That’s got to be real helpful to the ACC commish in current negotiations.
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Ratacovitch comparing the avc revenue growth year 2021 to a covid year of revenue. Apples to rotten prunes, what a genius!
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