I do not see this as all this way one day (until 2025) and all that way the next (2025+1 day) Conference commissioners and University Presidents do not wait until the first day after and try to figure it out. That happens as long beforehand as it can be. It is their job to make sure such transitions are well-thought out and smooth, provide the best course forward and above all else, make both financial and logical sense for their institutions. Everything that is going to happen in 2025 is happening now and in truth has been happening since the last agreement was signed.

There is also a myth of sorts that the Big-12 makes bank because the original deal was for 12 schools and now there are ten. That is just not so. ESPN and the Big-12 both have clauses in their agreement that allow both or either to challenge the original agreement if one or more terms are activated. When the Big-12 lost 4 schools and picked up two, each exist and entry - 6 in total activated a term that ESPN could challenge.

But, ESPN didn't. Instead they said this still works for us. So the current deal with the Big-12 is for ten schools and more importantly for the current ten schools, not just any ten schools. I have no idea all of the factors that caused ESPN to reach that conclusion but the Big-12 has made ESPN money in viewership and ratings, hence the recent dipping of their toes into the Tier 3 market for the Big-12. ESPN obviously feels there is yet more money to be made with the Big-12 and ESPN finds it worthwhile to hand the Big-12 even more money than they do now. Even at that level of interaction all of the Big-12 schools still retain the bulk of their existing Tier 3 rights. ESPN+ is only buying a small portion, even though what they are getting is still a lot to them (ESPN).

I think what bothers some people especially those in the ACC is that they have to tell themselves the deal with the Big-12 is this paid for 12 but only have ten thing to sooth some imagined insult to the ACC by virtue of their contract. The Big-12 + ESPN interaction has nothing to do with the ACC + ESPN interaction. I am not sure there is a way to compare them, as they each cover very different markets and products. Apples and Oranges.

What it looks like form the peanut gallery is that the Big-12 has benefited from artful and well-skilled negotiations and the ACC, not so much. Even that has nothing to do with Virginia Tech, although the Hokies are impacted b the results of that level of negotiation.

Frankly, I am not sure how the ACC has such a bad deal. The ACC stable and footprint, population base, all eastern time zone and the dabbling of Notre Dame in your programs should make for a package that far exceeds the Big-12 hoped for goals. But it works the other way. I think someone has to work very hard to get such a bad deal for the ACC.

I would like to see smaller conferences like the Big-12. I think round robin is the best setup. Eleven teams is a nice mix, 5 home and 5 away in football and 20 games home and away with each member in basketball. CCG have lost their luster and even at ten we can have them now but who really cares?