What comes next
Realignment seemed unlikely to end with USC and UCLA and now it’s all but guaranteed it will continue after Oregon and Washington. Arizona, Arizona State and Utah followed Colorado to the Big 12, all but eliminating the Pac-12.
How does that impact Penn State? Well, teams in the ACC are unlikely to stand pat after seeing a conference continue to grow as it falls behind the Big Ten and SEC — especially after recent comments at a Florida State trustees’ meeting made it abundantly clear the program saw leaving the ACC as an option. Inevitably that will lead to more growth for either the SEC or Big Ten as college sports continues to trend toward having two massive conferences and everybody else. There will likely be more additions in the future, with reports of California and Stanford already getting consideration to become members 19 and 20.
Florida State looms as a potential option — as does Clemson — if the ACC schools can find a way to break the conferences grant of rights deal that could keep them in the ACC until 2036.
Then, of course, is the always-relevant Notre Dame question. The school remains independent in football, but with media revenue continuing to expand for the Big Ten and SEC, it’s possible that pressure could increase for the program to latch onto a conference in the sport. It already competes in the ACC in basketball, but that does not guarantee that would be the football destination if they decide to abandon their independent status.
Any other additions of high-level schools will only increase the competitiveness of the conference, potentially harming the Nittany Lions’ ability to make the playoff based on the difficulty of the regular season schedule.
Future expansion of the conference could also lead to a return to divisions, as the conference attempts to find ways to manage having a limited number of opponents in football.
The primary influences of future changes — more scheduling alterations, more potential trips — are obvious, but the underlying and unknowable impact of what it means for all of college sports continues to loom.
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