The rumors of realignment in college athletics are back and the latest report on Monday afternoon focused solely on the University of North Carolina and its future in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
A report from WRAL suggests that the university Board of Trustees has met several times in closed-door sessions about the future of athletics and that a push to leave the ACC is becoming more and more likely.
Dave Boliek was named in the report from WRAL as a member who is pushing for UNC to leave the ACC and join a new conference:
“I am advocating for that,” he said. “That’s what we need to do. We need to do everything we can to get there. Or the alternative is the ACC is going to have to reconstruct itself. I think all options are on the table.”
The issues of revenue are a serious concern for athletics, especially in the ACC for the university. Per WRAL, the athletic department submitted a preliminary budget proposal with a $17 million deficit for the 2024-25 academic year and $100 million in cumulative deficits moving forward.
Something needs to be fixed or changed to address the situation and the university isn’t getting much help from the ACC. That’s were realignment comes in.
UNC’s Bubba Cunningham did not comment on the matter but will be at the BoT’s meeting on Thursday:
Chatted with North Carolina AD Bubba Cunningham at ACC spring meetings. He had no comment on today’s report from WRAL. He says he hasn’t read it. He added he’ll be at a BoT meeting Thursday. https://t.co/f3xdU4M3Ft
— Brandon Marcello (@bmarcello) May 13, 2024
Joining one of the “power two” conferences like the Big Ten or SEC would provide more revenue for the university. However, it would also be a big death blow to the ACC that has seen Florida State and Clemson flirting with leaving the conference.
North Carolina could be the first big domino to leave and from there, it could open the door for more programs to make the move.