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<blockquote data-quote="Charleston Mountie" data-source="post: 129460207" data-attributes="member: 1427666">If there is anything to be learned from past expansion, there is nothing to be sure of. While I readily agree that the GORs in place for the ACC and the Big-12 are sturdy documents that are nothing more than added complications if a conference like the Big Ten or SEC wanted an ACC school and that school wanted that poaching conference. To believe otherwise is a bit like sticking one's head in the sand. Would it be messy and complicated? Yes. But it would also be possible.Money is like crack to conferences and in the last 20 years they have seen their athletic departments turn into money machines. But there is no new avenue for revenue to be had without something major. Cable deals are dead, because cable is dying and with it what seemed like ESPN's bottomless bag of money. The only way now to increase money is to change the mix of the conference and the SEC and Big Ten both have a shortage of teams to get to 16. Both have raided the Big-12 for what they wanted and that only leaves the ACC.Unfortunately for the ACC, they are the poor children now and there revenues are well in 5th place and the difference between them and the other 4 is growing. Worse there is not going to be an ACCN. Schools like conference are all about counting the money these days and those schools in the ACC can stand by so long and watch their SEC and Big Ten peers grow fatter for so long.A GOR is simply a complication, a tough one I will grant you but it is not iron clad either.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Charleston Mountie, post: 129460207, member: 1427666"] If there is anything to be learned from past expansion, there is nothing to be sure of. While I readily agree that the GORs in place for the ACC and the Big-12 are sturdy documents that are nothing more than added complications if a conference like the Big Ten or SEC wanted an ACC school and that school wanted that poaching conference. To believe otherwise is a bit like sticking one's head in the sand. Would it be messy and complicated? Yes. But it would also be possible. Money is like crack to conferences and in the last 20 years they have seen their athletic departments turn into money machines. But there is no new avenue for revenue to be had without something major. Cable deals are dead, because cable is dying and with it what seemed like ESPN's bottomless bag of money. The only way now to increase money is to change the mix of the conference and the SEC and Big Ten both have a shortage of teams to get to 16. Both have raided the Big-12 for what they wanted and that only leaves the ACC. Unfortunately for the ACC, they are the poor children now and there revenues are well in 5th place and the difference between them and the other 4 is growing. Worse there is not going to be an ACCN. Schools like conference are all about counting the money these days and those schools in the ACC can stand by so long and watch their SEC and Big Ten peers grow fatter for so long. A GOR is simply a complication, a tough one I will grant you but it is not iron clad either. [/QUOTE]

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