This latest wave of realignment in college sports is coinciding with the move from a four-team College Football Playoff to a 12-team playoff. Schools might be betting that they can make the 12-team playoff in a tougher conference, but we will have to wait and see if that calculation is fundamentally accurate.
In the midst of all the tumult and churn in college sports, USA TODAY Sports columnist Dan Wolken makes an interesting point about the chase for realignment dollars coming at the possible expense of annual playoff access:
“More often than not, this has been the pattern of conference realignment: Those who leave to chase dollars tend to win fewer games and become less of a factor nationally than they were before.
“Had the Pac-12 survived, Oregon and Washington and perhaps a few others would have had a clear path to the playoff almost every year. In the Big Ten, they’ll have to go through Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin and the rest.
“That’s why maybe everyone — looking specifically at you, Florida State — should pause for a moment and take a deep breath before further wrecking the foundation upon which all of this is built.
“With the Pac-12 now scattered to the wind, the ACC is the next league that could endure an existential crisis thanks to a media deal that will leave its schools $20 million or more annually behind its SEC and Big Ten counterparts.
“Florida State officials have been especially vocal in recent months about looking for an exit ramp if it can’t close the gap. Clemson and Miami are also notably antsy.”
It’s high-stakes poker. We will see if these realignment bets are worth it, or if these schools will want to cash out and re-create the Pac-12 in 15 years.
[lawrence-auto-related count=1 tag=696092335]