AugustaSwarm
Ramblin' Wreck
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The reason that FSU and Clemson and whoever else haven't done anything yet is because none of that has any legal standing. The GoR aren't dependent on an ESPN contract - in fact, the GoR SHOULDN'T be dependent on ESPN and would show a lack of fiduciary action by the ACC if it did.I think there is a legal argument to be made that the language in the GOR is dependent on the ESPN contract. However, that doesn't mean that it is definite that the GOR doesn't apply if the contract is cancelled. It just means that someone can make a legal argument in court. Winning that case is a different thing.
FSU claimed that ESPN can simply walk away in January of next year. Random people have speculated that an argument can be made that the GOR would become unenforceable if there is no ESPN contract. There has been no confirmation that ESPN can just walk away from the entire contract. ESPN doesn't want the contract details to be public. ESPN isn't talking about any details of the contract. The ACC isn't talking about any details of the contract. FSU stopped talking about details of the contract after pressure from ESPN. As such, nobody in the public actually knows if such a clause exists in the contract.
The sites click bait sites you see are just people spouting off what they have read on message boards. Such people take the possibility that ESPN has an option to cancel the ACC contract, and just simply believe it with zero confirmation. Such people take the possibility that someone could argue in court that the GOR depends on the ESPN contract and believe that the GOR just spontaneously combusts if there is no ESPN contract. They then say things like "ESPN is cancelling the ACC contract in January, the GOR will end, and FSU will be in the Big10 in 2025". Some people just believe those statements. The big issue to me is that such "reporting" is never called out. The swaim guy kept saying last year (2023) that FSU is announcing the departure from the ACC next Friday. Then two weeks from tomorrow. Then on such and such a date. People kept repeating him over and over again even though he was wrong every time. If he ever gets something correct, people will froth over him and talk about how he knew what was going to happen. They never remember the 10s or 100s of times that he is completely wrong.
EDIT: One thing I neglected to say. If FSU knew that ESPN has such an option and plan to cancel the contract next January, and they know that the GOR is invalid once the contract is cancelled, then why file a lawsuit last December? Why publish NDA information about the ESPN contract? Why have the Florida AG antagonize ESPN? They could have placated their fans for one year, and then left the easy way, and the lawsuit doesn't really mean anything under that scenario.
The ACC, as the holder of the collective media rights, must be able to negotiate with the various broadcast entities to perform their fiduciary responsibility. I'm sure there is a mechanism for each party (the ACC and ESPN) to cancel the contract, but each side likely is due a payout if the other party cancels early. So neither side is willing to be the first to start the conversations.
The ACC is likely stuck with its current contract. It was structured in a way to make it financial painful to break. All the speculation is nothing more than that. If FSU wants out, the contract clearly lays out the terms.