By Otis Kirk
FAYETTEVILLE -- Frank Broyles had a vision of what college football would eventually become and in 2023 some of that is still playing out.
Broyles was ahead of the majority of college football and got Arkansas into the SEC beginning play in 1992. Broyles recognized the then Southwest Conference wasn't going to survive in the future of big contracts and payouts. So he moved the Hogs to the SEC in a very wise move.
The SEC is preparing for Oklahoma and Texas to enter play in the 2024-25 year. That will get the nation's top conference to 16 schools. The Big 12 refused to rollover and die though after losing Texas and Oklahoma.
In recent days the Big 12 has added Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah. The Big Ten had added USC and UCLA earlier and now they moved to get Oregon and Washington. That leaves the Pac-12 with just Washington State, Oregon State, Stanford and California. The Mountain West could eventually prove to be an option for some or all of those four schools.
Those four schools now face a very uncertain future given the incompetence of the Pac-12. Unlike the Big 12 who got aggressive after losing the Longhorns and Sooners, the Pac-12 did nothing after losing first USC and UCLA. Various reports insist Texas Tech and maybe others from the Big 12 would have jumped at an offer to the Pac-12.
The aggressiveness of the SEC, Big Ten and Big 12 has put the ACC is an odd position as well. Florida State president Richard McCullough told the board that the Seminoles would "very seriously" consider leaving the ACC unless there is a radical change to the conference's revenue distribution model. Rumors have linked both Florida State and Clemson to the Big Ten and SEC.
The ACC has a television contract with ESPN that runs through 2036. That means any school wanting to leave would have to pay an exit fee of $120 million. The Pac-12's television contract expires following the 2023 season thus meaning those schools leaving didn't have to pay an exit fee.
But the exit fee and contract with ESPN may not prevent some ACC schools leaving according to various sources. The gap what ACC schools get compared to those in the Big Ten and SEC is very wide which is concerning to Florida State and very likely others.
All eyes will be on the ACC in coming weeks with the latest dismantling of the Pac-12. As of now here's the way the Power 5 conferences minus the Pac-12 is slated to look in 2024-25 school year. Notre Dame seems content at this time to remain as they are.
SEC
Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Missouri, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
Big Ten
Indiana, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern. Purdue, Wisconsin, USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington.
Big 12
BYU, Houston, Cincinnati, UCF, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas Tech, West Virginia and Baylor.
ACC
Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.