FanPost

ACC expansion by the numbers...

These Big East teams have all been suggested as fits for ACC expansion.  They are ranked in order of best Academics/Athletics ratio according to their National University rankings and the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup Rankings.  AAU denotes membership to the prestigious Association of American Universities.  *Asterisk shows that University Rankings can tie based on the formula used.

 

Big East Conference

Teams

National University Ranking

Sports-Directors’ Cup Ranking

Academics to Sports Average

 

Notre Dame

19

18

18.5

 

UConn

58*

44

51

 

Syracuse

62

61

61.5

AAU Member

Pitt

58*

123

90.5

 

Louisville

164*

34

99

 

West Virginia

164*

40

102

AAU Member

Rutgers

68

158

113

 

UConn makes a very strong case to be a part of the ACC with two very strong rankings, as does Syracuse.  One thing you may notice is the average of Pitt and WVU aren’t too far apart.  So why is WVU not getting any love?  No one’s doubting the athletic strength of West Virginia, but their academic ranking is more than double that of Pitt’s.  And they're not an AAU member like Pitt.  Even with a pretty awful sports ranking, the addition of Pitt into the ACC may show just how much the presidents do weigh academics to potential sports money.

 

Now lets look at how the ACC stands and where our new members would rank…

 

ACC Conference

Teams

National University Ranking

Sports- Directors’ Cup Ranking

Academics to Sports Average

AAU Member

Duke

10

5

7.5

AAU Member

Virginia

25

7

16

AAU Member

UNC

29

6

17.5

AAU Member

Maryland

55

17

36

 

Miami

38

51

44.5

AAU Member

Georgia Tech

36

59

47.5

 

Boston College

31

64

47.5

 

Wake Forest

25

74

49.5

 

Florida State

101… yikes

9

55

 

Clemson

68

47

57.5

 

Virginia Tech

71

45

58

 

Syracuse

62

61

61.5

 

NC State

101… yikes2.0

67

84

AAU Member

Pittsburgh

58

123

90.5

 

First Thoughts- Duke, UVA, and UNC are incredibly impressive.

Next Thought- Look at Maryland!... Very proud to be an alum.

Things I take away from this-  We have added to academic institutions that fit very well with our conference.  While they look to be at the bottom according to the average, remember this stuff does not include market or power sports money such as football and basketball.  ‘Cuse and Pitt each bring a new market and BIGTIME basketball. 

Biggest Disappointment- NC State… seriously?  With those scores and knowing that they haven’t been relevant in Football or Basketball in some time, and that we have plenty of other schools in North Carolina makes me ask what the hell are they doing for this conference?  I think State fans should start showing a little more gratitude for being allowed to be in such great company in this conference.

 

 

Now where does the ACC go from here when it comes to a possible expansion to 16 teams?  Here are the teams that are probably being looked at the closest… (Sorry WVU, but unless you are able to convince NC State to honorably resign from the ACC, it wont be happening)

 


Conference

AAU Member

Team

National University Ranking

Directors’ Cup Ranking

Academics to Athletics Average

 

BigEast/Ind

No

Notre Dame

19

18

18.5

Big Ten

Yes

Penn State

45

13

29

Big East

No

UConn

58

44

51

Big East

Yes

Rutgers

68

158

113

 

 

Notre Dame would be an obvious choice.  Not an AAU member but still one of the elite academic and athletic institutions in the country.  But to those around the country who feel they don't belong in the ACC, the numbers show that they wouldn't crack the top 3.  Yes, in football money they would wipe the floor with the the schools of the ACC, but as far as a general academic and athletic standards, the Irish could benefit from joining the ACC.

Here's where it gets interesting.  Penn St, believed by many to be a great geographical and cultural fit for the ACC, has rankings that would make them only the 8th strongest school academically (4th in the BigTen) and the 5th strongest school athletically (2nd in the BigTen) in the ACC.  Here is the Big Ten rankings to prove it...

 


Big Ten Conference

Teams

National University Ranking

Sports- Directors’ Cup Ranking

Academics to Sports Average

AAU Member

Michigan

28

15

21.5

AAU Member

Ohio State

55

2

28.5

AAU Member

Northwestern

12

46

29

AAU Member

Penn State

45

13

29

AAU Member

Illinois

45

23

34

AAU Member

Wisconsin

42

26

34

AAU Member

Minn

68

29

48.5

AAU Member

Indiana

75

28

51.5

AAU Member

Purdue

62

49

55.5

AAU Member

Michigan State

71

42

56.5

AAU Member

Iowa

71

43

57

 

Nebraska

101

33

67

 

One thing to notice is the AAU Membership; 11 of 12 schools in the Big Ten compared to 6 of 14 in the ACC.  But the academics and athletics are actually very close between the two conferences.  The academic average of the ACC is 50 and the Big Ten is 43... If you take away the far outliers of both conferences (FSU/NCST in ACC and Neb in Big Ten), the average is ACC-41 and Big Ten- 40.

Final thoughts and Point to all this..

Football is the money maker but looking at these numbers you should be able to see how academics and other sports success could heavily influence institutions when it comes to conference realignment.  I think the ACC could pull off getting Penn St. because these numbers show there is minimal academic/athletic loss but they immediately become a top dog in football, which they would love to be since they probably think they wish they have had more success in the Big Ten.

Lastly... After writing all this out, I can see how the B1G has some serious options if they wished to expand.  I think Maryland and Virginia, especially Maryland, could be serious options for them if they felt the conference needed to expand.  Yes, neither of those schools is a football power, but that's not what this post was about....

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