They beat the B1G to the punch and could have selected Rutgers, WVU, UCONN, Pitt, UofL, or Cuse. Instead, they selected their worst possible option in BC. THAT's where the struggles began.

Had they selected a larger U, with a larger fanbase that's not so incredibly far removed from the heart of the league, they would be in much much better shape right now. There's no doubt Maryland would have stuck around.

Consider this breakdown:

Coastal:
WVU/Pitt/Rutgers
UNC
VT
Miami
GT
Duke

Atlantic:
Maryland
UVA
Wake
FSU
Clemson
NC St.

Now consider the schedules such a set up would provide. The ACC has seemingly ignored that most important of aspects.

Anyhow, with such a setup, the ACC would be a rock solid clear cut number one in the rapidly growing MidAtlantic region.

The absolutely horrible addition of BC created the vulnerability. It was a reach to get them and it hasn't paid off. If they were a part of what ND wanted, then the ACC could have always reached up into NE then. The B1G wants nothing to do with BC.

And the contract has indeed been a disaster. It forced the ACC's hand into taking Cuse and Pitt too. The ACC HAD TO do something in order to renegotiate the contract. Regrettably, ESPN knew they had them on the hook, so they required an extension of that horribly deal.

And BTW, the ACC left itself in a place in which they could not start a network. And unfortunately its schools could not do so either.

ACC leadership has placed them into the having to counterpunch position. That was absolutely not the case back in the 03-04 era. And it wasn't totally the case in 09, when the contract was being negotiated.

The ACC chose the worst possible number 12 and then they signed an absolutely horrible deal. That has left them vulnerable to the B1G and it has left them clearly behind other leagues in terms of revenue.