Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - ESPN Extends ACC Rights: Florida State & Clemson are STUCK now?

Starting point is 00:00:00 I'm sure Kenton was absolutely shocked to see that ESPN exercised the option to lock in the ACC TV rights until 2036. So for Florida State and Clemson, everyone else, does this mean we're all stuck together for another 11 years? You are locked on ACC, your daily podcast on the Atlantic Coast Conference. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Shout out to the everydayers and thank you so much for making Locked on ACC. Your first listen and your first watch today. We're available free wherever you get your podcast. We're free on YouTube.

Starting point is 00:00:45 We're part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Today's episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the GameTime app. Create an account and use code Locked on College for $20 off your first purchase. He is Kenton Gibbs from Lockdown Wolfpack. I am Alex Dono from Locked on Caines. We will talk some ACC hoops with our special guests today because you got Duke versus UNC tomorrow. That's a big one, although Duke is very heavily favored.

Starting point is 00:01:10 We'll talk about potential settlements between Florida State Clemson and the ACC because Kenton, the ACC TV deal is very much in the news here late this week. And I know you're absolutely flabbergasted by this because all of these other YouTube shows have been saying for the past year or so that, hey, ESPN, they're going to kick the ACC to the They're going to decline the option for 2027, which is going to disband the ACC within the next couple years. But yet, lo and behold, ESPN unilaterally, because they're the ones who had that option. They exercised the option and they have officially locked the ACC in until 2036. How are you feeling?

Starting point is 00:01:51 Donald, my flabber is thoroughly gassed. I cannot believe this. I am so shocked. If only there were two handsome ball gentlemen. who could have warned them, oh, this is not going to go the way many of you think it is. The ACC, even without Florida State and Clemson, still a net positive based on how much the ESPN deal is paying them versus how much it makes back. It would not make fiscal sense for ESPN to get rid of them. If only two folks have said that, you know, if only.

Starting point is 00:02:26 But we can only hope to live in such a world where, again, we had two very trustworthy, very, shiny ball of gentlemen helping us out with such matters. But we don't live in that reality, Dono. So we were all in the dark and confused as to how this TV rights got extended. And that's why we have a special guest on the day because we need somebody else to help us figure this out. And we've got a special guest who has been covering the ACC since 1981. Does an awesome job covering the league for Saturday down south. Brett Friedlander is with us. Mr. Friedlander, I'm sure you're not surprised to see ESPN exercise this option. There's some other things, though, that were revealed here in the reporting,

Starting point is 00:03:07 including, you know, Notre Dame, who has an ACC scheduling agreement in football, although they're independent. They're going to be playing Clemson, Florida State, and Miami a lot more from here on out. Yes. Contrary to the Realignment X people, I think this was the end game all along. First of all, as Kenton mentioned, if your ESPN, Why would you get rid of inventory, especially when you have a sweetheart deal? I mean, Florida State, Clemson, a lot of people in the ACC are complaining about how they're not bringing in enough money.

Starting point is 00:03:41 So why would you take a commodity that will help fill air and you're getting it at a discounted rate? Why would you get rid of it? So there's that. Second of all, I honestly believe that this from the Clemson and especially from a Clemson, but also from Florida State standpoint. point. This was the end game all along. I don't think these lawsuits were designed to actually go to court and to get out of the league. I think it was to force the ACC into doing an uneven revenue share kind of situation, which is what we're going to get. And I think, you know, I don't know about the, you know, whether this thing lasts until 2036. You know,

Starting point is 00:04:22 maybe once we get to 2031, it'll be cost effective for Florida State if they're still interested in leaving and if anybody wants them to leave, you know, or what is college athletics going to look like in 2031? I mean, who knows whether there will be conferences at all or whether it all just be one big mishmash in an NFL kind of situation. But I think this makes the ACCC one big happy family again, at least buys them five to six years, right? Well, you know, you talk about the idea of big happy family and what that looks like and all like this. stuff. But I want to ask you a question specifically towards the revenue sharing model that you said, because I'm going to tell you, nothing starts a blood feud between family members

Starting point is 00:05:07 like looking over and saying, wait a minute, why's because of Florida State getting the bigger cut of the pie than me? So the ACC already tried to address that by rewarding postseason success. And congratulations, if you're watching this show, you had as much postseason success as Florida State last year. So with that in mind, what does the new revenue? sharing look like or how does that more thoroughly benefit of Florida State than perhaps the old deal before the extension or before the option was exercised? Well, it'll give them a bigger piece of the pie. And that's what they want. Now, they want, they'll want more than what they're going to get, but at least they'll feel like that they got something out of this, that they won. And the other

Starting point is 00:05:52 thing, too, is right now, their bargaining position is nowhere near what it was last year at this time. I mean, does the SEC really want them right now? Does the Big Ten really need them right now? No. And so where are they going to go? And then, you know, the other thing on this is when you look at the other side of this, this spectrum, to the Wake Forests, the Boston colleges, the Virginia Tech, the Syracuse's of the world, why would they want this?

Starting point is 00:06:18 Because you remember when the Big 12 went to this, Texas got more and everybody got mad, and that was the end of the Big 12, or almost the end of the Big 12. I think this is a different situation now. Because if you're Wake Forest, if you're Boston College, if you're Virginia Tech, where are you going to go? If you leave the ACC or if the ACC breaks up, where do you go? I mean, Wake Forest, they're going to be in the big South. I mean, you know, unless you put together a, you know, a conference of nerd schools, you know, the academic conference. And it's still not going to be a power conference.

Starting point is 00:06:53 So, you know, if you're one of those teams, you either take. less money and you're happy about it or no you're not happy about it but you tolerate it or you take the risk of getting cut loose and ending up you know in a second tier league or worse your Washington state or Oregon state and so I think that this situation is different because everybody now is in is in a position where they need this from the top and also at the bottom this makes a lot of sense I want to continue the conversation with Brett Friedlander who joins us from Saturday down south, including the part of it that did come as news to me when this option was announced talking about, you know, Notre Dame, who again is in the ACC and everything but football, but they have a football scheduling

Starting point is 00:07:40 agreement. It's going to be a lot more matchups with the top revenue generators inside the conference. You guys want to keep it locked right here. We're only getting started on this brand new episode of Locked on ACC. Folks, the only ticket app that Kenton and I use is game time. the best deals, lowest prices, best features on the app, guarantees galore on the GameTime app. Guys, if you want to get tickets to that big game that's coming up,

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Starting point is 00:08:58 Use code locked on college for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, create an account and redeem code locked on college, all one word, for $20 off. Download game time today. Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. Thank you so much for making Locked on ACC, your first listen and your first watch today. If your next listen, make sure you check out Locked on college football. I know Spencer McLaughlin, even having this conversation with Kenton, has been talking about the ESPN picking up the option on the

Starting point is 00:09:31 ACC. We're talking about it now with Brett Friedlander. So, you know, Brett, interesting with the whole Notre Dame angle where, you know, ESPN and the ACC, they want to, you know, use Notre Dame, even though they're not a football member. Hey, we're going to guarantee now that every year they're going to play at least two out of the three biggest revenue draws, Florida State, Miami and Clemson. But the interesting part of that to me, maybe I'm thinking too much about this is that also, theoretically gives Florida, Miami, and Clemson, you know, a tougher schedule every three years or two out of three years, which may create some competitive imbalance. I mean, what do you think about the whole Notre Dame angle? Well, the fact that the ACC has given Notre Dame such a, you know, it's such a great advantage here by being in the league but not being in the league and, you know, allowing it to stay independent by giving it half of its schedule is ridiculous to begin with.

Starting point is 00:10:30 but, you know, listen, I think that this is going to work out in everybody's favor, I guess, a little bit. For Notre Dame, it gives them those high-profile games and it gives them the strength of schedule that they didn't have this year. For Florida State, Miami and Clemson, I believe it's going to give them a revenue bump because I think that, you know, ESPN's going to make a lot more money with Notre Dame on its airwaves. And I think that some of that's going to get passed on to those three schools, which is, you know, part of the whole uneaten distribution thing. So they'll benefit there. And yes, I mean, they'll have a tougher schedule. But that also works in your favor when you're trying to get an at-large bid to play on.

Starting point is 00:11:15 Because, you know, you look at the argument for Alabama and SMU and Indiana, you know, this year, strength of schedule played very, very heavily intensive. that. So I think it will kind of erase a little bit of the stigma that they're in the ACC and they're playing in a subpar league and their schedule stinks and that they're soft. You know, you beat Notre Dame and that automatically, you know, gives you a little bit more credibility to the committee. So, Brett, I wanted to talk to you about the, you know, you talk about how the Notre Dame playing all these top draws is good for everybody. But I don't know if you know this, but is the language specifically for those three teams, or is it the top three draws in general so that those games may fluctuate potentially?

Starting point is 00:12:06 So it's like, hey, if Dallas all of a sudden starts to put their all of their weight behind SMU, and you're looking at one of the biggest five metropoliters in America, and everybody's now watching these guys, that would then alter it. And it'd be like, hey, Notre Dame is now playing, let's say Florida State drops out or Clemson drops all this, Florida State, Miami, and SSM. you or whatever the case may be. That's a good question. I haven't really seen the contract yet, so I don't know, but I would hope that that would be the case. And to be honest with you, I don't think Notre Dame would mind that too much either because they're all about being a national

Starting point is 00:12:42 program and playing in Dallas would not be the worst thing that could happen to them. So, you know, it gives them that kind of exposure in Texas and recruiting and all that kind of stuff. So I think that they would be amenable to that. I don't know if that's part of the contract. But yeah, and you know, the other thing, too, is, I mean, if you're Virginia or you're Georgia Tech or NC State, not having to play Notre Dame as often is not a terrible thing. I mean, you play them every once in a while and you get that bump in attendance and, you know, that bump in exposure. But, you know, let those other guys have to lock horns with those.

Starting point is 00:13:24 them all the time. So I'd love to hear kind of to bring it back to something you mentioned early on. Well, let's talk to the fans of Florida State and Clemson. I haven't seen as many Clemson reactions, but I've seen a lot of Florida State fans on social media who are like, you know, very, very upset about the idea that they may, you know, be stuck in the ACC for longer than they'd hoped, right? A lot of them were rooting for ESPN to decline the option and just, you know, put a Oppenheimer type of bomb into the whole,

Starting point is 00:13:56 into the whole ACC future. So, you know, do you think, Brett, is this another sign that there's going to be a settlement? You talked about how that may have been the goal early on. These court cases, it's been a little over a year. They've been dragging on. Do you think ultimately Florida State and Clemson are going to be in the ACC to at least 2031?

Starting point is 00:14:16 Is that what we're looking at? And explain to people why 2031 may be the magic year. Well, first of all, 2031 would be the magic year because when you get to that point, you're only five years out from the contract being, being, or the grant of rights being, you know, expiring. And so the buyout would then maybe be a little bit more fiscally reasonable. I mean, right now it's prohibitive. But if you're only talking about five years worth of revenue that you're going to be losing by not being in the league instead of 12 years, you can possibly. generally, you can justify that. So I think that's why 2031 is the talk, because it gives them a window where maybe we can afford this. As far as the mindset of the Florida State fans, I think the

Starting point is 00:15:13 well was really poisoned by their board of trustees last year. And in particular, Drew Weatherford, who, oh, by the way, owns a private equity firm. And, oh, by the way, if they were to leave and they were to pay that buy out and get out, who would be financing the whole thing? Well, a private equity firm. And I wouldn't be shocked if it was Drew Weatherford. So, you know, I think that they have kind of been riled up to the point where they just believe that the ACC is terrible.

Starting point is 00:15:42 They're above it. And they just don't want anything to do with it. I think Clemson fans are different. I don't necessarily think Clemson was really looking to get out of the ACC, but I think that they saw the lawsuit by Florida State as a vehicle to have this happen, to have a settlement where they end up with a bigger piece of the pie. And I honestly believe that the ACC was resigned to the fact that this was the end game for them too, that, you know, by filing a countersuit, dragging this thing out, that they could just,

Starting point is 00:16:14 you know, if they could hold out long enough, everybody would be, you know, satisfied with just being over with and, you know, we're going to get a little bit and the settlement is basically everybody getting there a little bit. You know, this, all these court cases remind me of that old song, stuck in the middle with you because I got clowns to the left of me and Jokers to the right. Of course, not on this episode. I'm not talking about you too, wonderful gentlemen. But I want to know, speak to those people for a minute, Brett. People on the very pro-ACC side are like, the ACC is in a great position of strength. Why would they ever settle?

Starting point is 00:16:50 And then to the other side, yes, the option being extended was a massive blow, but some people still live in La La Land that are a part of the Tiger and Noel fan base and even the Dirty Foot Club, also known as UNC, to where they're like, oh, we're going to get out somehow. So I want you to talk to those people and kind of explain why you see the settlement as being the most likely outcome. Well, because a lawsuit will be very, very costly for everybody. It will take time because it hasn't gone to a courtroom yet.

Starting point is 00:17:21 I mean, this thing is going to drag on for another couple of years, maybe three years to begin with anyway. So you're just adding another two, three years onto that window. And everybody's going to get something. I mean, there's going to be no winners, no losers. Everybody's going to be able to claim victory. And everybody's not going to get everything that they want. And so I think that's why it's a win for everybody. Yeah, I got a follow up on North Carolina because obviously they're not suing the ACC as Florida State and Clemson are.

Starting point is 00:17:52 I've seen kind of a surge this week. And it's probably all the usual clickbait stuff. But I mean, why are so many people all of a sudden now talking about North Carolina going to the SEC? Is this just more clickbait smoke or is there actual, you know, maybe fire behind the smoke? I think this is more of the Bill Belichick fallout than anything else. I think it's clickbait because, number one, everything I've heard, you know, the whole, like I said, the Realignment X thing has been to the Big Ten, not the SEC. The other thing is that the North Carolina legislature has passed a law last year that whereas the Tar Heels go, they got to bring NC State with them. and I don't think the SEC is interested in having both of them.

Starting point is 00:18:42 So I think that this is clickbait and it makes for good fodder for locked on podcasts and columnist like myself. And I don't think there's a lot of smoke, but not a lot of fire. That's fair enough. That's fair enough. Now, in terms of, and we're going to get out of the courts and on to the courts after this, but I got one more question for you about the litigation situations. here that you see going on here.

Starting point is 00:19:10 In terms of how the lawsuits have played out so far, has anything surprised you or shocked you about these findings so far that you've seen? Because you and I both know, we expected this to take a while and, you know, the filings have been like a drag your feet off basically. But is there anything that you've seen so far pre-discovery that you're like, wow, I'm surprised that that is functioning in the way it is? Not really.

Starting point is 00:19:35 I mean, we really haven't seen a lot of it. I mean, we've just seen the tip of the iceberg. So, and I think that's another thing, too. I think the ACC is really interested in settling, too, because there's a lot of the discovery. I'm sure that they don't want to be public, especially when it comes to contract. So, yeah, I'm really not surprised. I, you know, we've seen, you know, some juicy stuff. But, yeah, I mean, it's all, I mean, it's really not anything shocking.

Starting point is 00:20:06 There hasn't been any smoking guns. you know absolutely yeah well from the courtroom to the basketball court we got duke in north carolina tomorrow we'll talk about it next right here on locked on acc thank you for making locked on acc your first listen in your first watch day if your next listen make sure you check out our other shows kenton and grace and boone do an awesome job hosting locked on wolf pack i host locked on canes so all parts of the conference we got you covered and we have brett friedlander on with us from saturday down south he's been covering the acc since the night 1980s. So Brett, you've seen a lot of classics over the years between Duke and UNC. They're going to meet for the first of two times this season on Saturday. And, you know, the Blue Devils are favored by 13 and a half points. Is this one where could the rivalry make this one a little bit more competitive than the odds makers think? And how do you think this plays out tomorrow evening?

Starting point is 00:21:07 Well, I have been to more UNC Duke games than I can remember. I can tell you that it almost always delivers. And I have seen matchups that are supposed to be mismatches that turn out to be great. The Jeff Capel game, for one, if you remember, that was one where Shoshchewski was out with his hip surgery, and Duke was terrible that year, and they still took him to double overtime. two years ago. Actually, it was three years ago now. When Coach Kay was making his farewell tour,

Starting point is 00:21:50 Carolina was supposed to go in there and basically be the Washington Generals, and they won the game. So I'm expecting this to be a lot closer than everybody thinks it is. It's a terrible matchup for Carolina. I mean, Duke is the way that team is constructed is totally the wrong team for UNC to be playing. UNC is like a donut. They're pretty solid around the perimeter, but they've got a gaping hole in the middle.

Starting point is 00:22:15 And Duke, you know, they've got a 7-foot-4 shot blocker in the middle, and come on, Mala-Lock. And everybody in their starting lineup is 6-5 or taller, and Carolina's got two guards that are, what, 6-1 and 6 feet. So it's just not a great match-up, but there's something about Cameron in particular that brings out the best in the tar heels. And I kind of see this game going very similar in storyline to the way the game on Monday between NC State and Duke went.

Starting point is 00:22:49 You're going to see Carolina come out and shoot out of its mind, and they're going to play like gangbusters, especially since the urgency is there for, you know, their NCAA tournament hopes are really on the rocks right now. So I think Carolina is going to come out and play just lights out, and, you know, they'll be right there with about eight minutes to go. and then Duke will go on one of those 14-2 runs and get some separation, and I think they'll end up winning by about 8 to 10. Now, see, me and Brett specifically agree. We weren't going to talk about Monday's game on there today. You know, that.

Starting point is 00:23:22 Listen, I think that NC State played its best game of the season. I agree. I want to know where Tray Parker has been all year. I mean, come on, Kevin. I mean, this guy, I mean, he can just ball out on offense. He was a monster on defense and, you know, everybody kind of picked up on the, on the, the energy that he brought. And he's been buried on the bent most of the year with Paul McNeil and he's gotten some run lately. So, yeah, sorry.

Starting point is 00:23:53 We don't need to talk about Kevin Keatson's rotations right now. I was talking about stuff that make me happy. I was talking about a game that dirty foot clubs probably going to lose. And here you go, you know what? We ain't got to go. We got to go to that. Brett, I do want to ask you this about this game. Give me the scenario for both of these.

Starting point is 00:24:08 North Carolina wins if Duke wins it. Well, North Carolina wins if it shoots about 55%, and if they can get Cooper Flagg into foul trouble and make him sit on the bench for about eight to 10 minutes in the game. I think that's their scenario. They also can't turn the ball over. You know, Elliot Kado can't go in there and commit seven turnovers. That would be disastrous. but yeah they got they got they got to shoot better than they have shot and they and they just

Starting point is 00:24:41 can't let duke kill them in the paint uh duke duke yeah just dude he says new quake they get off the bucks here's the thing about duke you know cooper flag is going to give you cooper flag he's going to fill the stat sheet um if con can'tipple goes one for seven from three point range Cian James scores 14 and Tyrese Proctor, you know, makes three, three-pointers. If Tyrese Proctor goes 0 for six from three-point, con Canipo goes six of eight, or Isaiah Evans comes off the bench and gives them 14 points in the first half. It's crazy how balanced that team is and how many weapons they have.

Starting point is 00:25:26 And they could afford one or two of their big guys to have an off game because they just have other guys that they rotate in. and, you know, gives them what they need. Well, hopefully the game is, in fact, closer than the odds makers expect. I mean, single digits would be a lot of fun for us neutrals who will be watching that one. We appreciate Brett Friedlander. Incredible stuff. Make sure you check out his work at Saturdaydownsouth.com.

Starting point is 00:25:52 Brett, thank you so much for the time. Anytime, Alex. And Kenton, it's always a pleasure, man. Hey, we're going to have Freelander Fridays rolling. But most of all these, we're going to change up to the lockdown. basement and we go call on you. I even wear a hurricanes for you, Alex. Different hurricanes, but hey,

Starting point is 00:26:11 you know. I'll count it. Great stuff. Huge thanks as always to Kenton Gibbs. I'm Alex Dono. We'll talk to you guys again next time on another episode of Lockdown ACC. We are part of the awesome Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day.

Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - ESPN Extends ACC Rights: Florida State & Clemson are STUCK now?

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