Tag: Stanford Big Ten

If Stanford really wants to join the ACC, there’s a clear plan for how to do it

Maybe Stanford wants the #B1G more than the #ACC … but if Stanford does want the ACC, there’s a roadmap for the school.

The other day, we made the larger overall point that Stanford University has a lot of avenues to consider as it tries to plot its next move in college sports realignment.

The Cardinal could seek membership in the ACC. They could try to get into the Big Ten. Many insiders and experts think that is Stanford’s No. 1 choice and preferred outcome, but we don’t know how much the Big Ten wants that same outcome.

The Cardinal could go independent in football and join a Power Five conference in other sports. They could pursue a Pac-4 merger with Mountain West and/or AAC schools in which the Pac-12, as a purely legal and contractual matter, continues to exist and thereby retains its annual payouts and distributions for the College Football Playoff and NCAA Tournament. Stanford would reduce its revenue losses and salvage a less-than-ideal situation with a tolerable (though not great) outcome.

Stanford has a lot to think about, and we do think it prefers the Big Ten if we’re being honest. However, let’s say for the sake of discussion that Stanford wants to get into the ACC.

If the Cardinal like that choice and want to make it happen, there’s a way for the school to execute a plan.

Let’s look at the details:

Maryland returning to ACC would solve many college sports realignment problems

If Maryland returned to the ACC, either Florida State or Stanford could join the #B1G. We’d get Duke-Maryland basketball back!

Realignment, as we keep finding out, is not a permanent thing. We thought in May the chessboard was going to remain relatively stable for the next few years until the new College Football Playoff television rights deal was negotiated for the 2026 season and beyond.

San Diego State and SMU joining the Pac-12 was viewed two months ago as possible realignment move, but that was going to be it. The Pac-12 would have stayed intact, and the other Power Five conferences would remain unchanged. Everything seemed quiet … and then Colorado bolted for the Big 12.

All heck broke loose.

The Pac-12 abruptly splintered and was reduced to the rubble of four teams. The Big 12 grew to 16 schools, and the Big Ten ballooned to 18 just days after commissioner Tony Petitti said his focus was only on getting USC and UCLA smoothly integrated into the conference.

Permanence is not part of the reality in realignment. Therefore, while a lot of different scenarios simply aren’t going to happen right now, they could happen in a few years. The idea the chessboard is fixed just doesn’t hold water.

By the end of this decade (the 2020s), it’s hard to see the ACC retaining all of the schools currently part of the conference. There is bound to be at least one defection if not more from the ACC. That would likely cause more defections and/or changes in the landscape.

It is worth looking at various conference and school changes which, if made, would make college sports so much better and serve the interests of numerous schools, not to mention fans and media. These changes aren’t going to happen in the next few years (we think), but it’s worth mentioning them.

Let’s start with the ACC, since that conference is the most likely to undergo changes within the next five years:

Can Stanford University play big-league poker to get a Power Five conference?

Let’s go through the various options Stanford has to land a Power Five spot if it doesn’t want to be independent in football.

Conference realignment is high-stakes poker. It is a matter of prestige, of revenue, of visibility and of prominence.

Stanford University, widely viewed as a premier academic institution in the United States, does not seem like a school which would — or should — comfortably accept relegation to the Mountain West or AAC. That would seem to be beneath the Cardinal. Their world-class women’s basketball program and their many other championship-level programs in Olympic sports deserve better.

Stanford resides in the prominent San Francisco Bay Area television market, which is supposed to carry considerable value for television networks and streaming outlets.

People will say, “But Stanford football sucks right now.” It does, but a decade ago, Stanford made three Rose Bowls in a four-year span and won two of them. The Cardinal can be very good with the right coach. Beyond that, Stanford has financial resources and enjoys strong academic standing and a cultural fit presidents and chancellors would envy.

The question is obvious: Why hasn’t Stanford already parlayed its advantages into a Power Five conference home? Why are the Cardinal still looking for a solution? It’s time for the school to play some poker. Serious poker.

Can this school play its cards right? Let’s explore some options.

ACC exploration of adding Stanford and Cal creates more realignment drama

So many possibilities, so many questions. Does this mean the #B1G has decided to not focus on Stanford? Let’s explore:

The realignment wheel will keep spinning for awhile.

What started with Colorado’s departure for the Big 12 is going to continue for several more shuffles until the full chessboard has been significantly reshaped. The latest possibility: Stanford and Cal to the ACC.

Pete Thamel of ESPN reported on Monday afternoon the ACC will have exploratory conversations about possibly inviting Stanford and Cal. These are just explorations, not negotiations, a distinction we always have to make when discussing realignment news, rumors and machinations. Any two entities can talk; negotiating is a different and advanced step in the sequence. We’re not yet there with the ACC and the Bay Area schools that are left from the Pac-12.

Nevertheless, this is definitely a significant story we have to keep our eyes on. There are obvious reasons why the ACC would do this, and there are obvious implications for the other conferences involved in realignment. There’s also a lot to say about Stanford, the Mountain West, Oregon State, Washington State and more.

Here we go: