Bilas suggests huge move for ACC
By: Staff Report July 26, 2021

Texas and Oklahoma announced their intent to leave the Big 12 following the 2024-25 academic year. Both schools are expected to join the SEC.

The move indicates another shift in the landscape of college athletics and ESPN’s Jay Bilas thinks the ACC needs to consider a move that would completely shatter the current landscape.

“The interesting thing for me is if you’re in this business you will have to start thinking long term. Greg Sankey and the SEC are certainly doing that,” Bilas said on SportsCenter Monday. “If I was the commissioner of the ACC I’d be thinking about approaching the SEC and saying look at all of the natural rivalries we have in our conference, why don’t we start thinking about a merger.”

He went on to describe what the addition of two historic programs in the Longhorns and Sooners means for the SEC and college athletics.

Ultimately Bilas feels the ACC has unique marketing ability to court a partnership with SEC thanks to natural rivalries like Clemson-South Carolina, Florida-Florida State and Clemson-Georgia.

“That’s what the SEC is going to become it’s going to become a junior NFL and a junior NBA and there’s no reason the ACC shouldn’t jump in there and try to take advantage of those natural rivalries and markets,” Bilas said. “If I was Jim Phillips, I would be ringing Greg Sankey’s phone and saying how about a merger.”

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