Brett McMurphy on Florida State, Clemson in ACC ‘They’re going to leave’

Action Network’s Brett McMurphy is assured Florida State and Clemson will leave the ACC. It’s not a matter of if, but when these schools finally exit.

That’s been the talk since the schools sued the conference in an attempt to exit. As lawsuits generally do, it’s going to be a dragged out process.

No matter how long it takes, it seems inevitable that Florida State and Clemson will leave the ACC and look for greener pastures.

“They’re gonna leave,” McMurphy said on The Paul Finebaum Show. “It’s not if, it’s when. I was at ACC Spring Meetings a couple of weeks ago and … basically sources with the ACC told me no surprise, the ACC is going to fight this to the bitter end. Obviously at some point they’re going to have to settle, but the ACC is going to delay that settlement as long as they can.

“Because as soon as they do reach a settlement and there is a number established for Florida State and Clemson to exit, then that opens the door for other schools to leave. The North Carolina schools, the Virginia schools. Certainly the SEC would have interest. I don’t think they have interest in Florida State or Clemson because they’ve already got Florida and South Carolina.”

If Florida State and Clemson don’t go to the SEC, the Big Ten is the next logical destination to get some coastal appeal.

But the Florida State and Clemson dominoes would be the biggest. From there, it’s a matter of where does a school like North Carolina go?

“I have heard North Carolina would be a very attractive addition to the SEC,” McMurphy said. “None of those other schools are going to do anything until they see what happens to Florida State and Clemson. The ACC will delay this as long as they can. In a weird way, it’s almost like they’re taking a page out of that strategy book of the great Dean Smith … 

“They’re gonna stall, they’re gonna stall, they’re gonna stall. Finally, if the judge tells them you’ve got to reach a settlement, then they will do that. But until then, they’re going to hold off and hope that it’s several years and not just a couple of years.”

The complaint filed in Pickens County by Clemson in March said the ACC’s “exorbitant $140 million” exit penalty and the grant of rights used to bind schools to a conference through their media rights should be struck down.

Florida State made similar claims as Clemson and the process will continue into the foreseeable future, at least, as it stands.