BSD Mailbag 7.29.2022

I’m suuuuuuper intrigued by what the ACC will do with the SEC and B1G beefing up the way they are. The Big 12 seems content to grab whatever G5 teams are doing well lately, and the Pac-12 Pac-10 seems content to do nothing. The ACC hasn’t been assaulted by either of the two big dogs yet, but I have to imagine there are overtures happening in the background. Whether any teams actually jump from the ACC remains to be seen, and the grant of rights is definitely a tough one, but of the three east coast conferences, the ACC seems like the most prone for dissolution.

My guess? Within about 5 years the ACC is no more.

The Big Ten is almost assuredly looking at some of the AAU schools, such as UVA, UNC, Duke, Georgia Tech, and yes, most likely Pitt as well. The SEC likely has their eye on Clemson, Miami, FSU, and perhaps Virginia Tech. That’s about ³⁄₄ of the current ACC that could be poached, and if that happens I expect one of two things to happen: either the ACC pulls a sheet from the Big 12 playbook and starts snapping up G5 teams, OR the more entertaining option is that the ACC and the Big 12 merge to create a third superconference.

But I just don’t see the ACC making up the ground it lost on the B1G and the SEC at this point, and so I expect it to stop existing (at least as we know it) in the next few years.

This irritated the heck out of me. Stevens would come in, perform really well, and then we’d never see him again. I’ll echo some other commenters that Penn State seemed to play looser against lower competition, but then get way too tight against the big dogs. Very frustrating watching Trace McSorley struggle, knowing that there were some trick packages that could have been brought out to provide a spark of some kind.

That being said, I seem to recall in either 2017 or 2018, in a game against Ohio State, they brought Tommy on the field, and the playcall was an option - Trace threw the ball backwards to Tommy, who could either run or pass it, and he had a receiver WIDE OPEN for a touchdown. Instead, he dropped the backward pass, and Penn State recovered the fumble, and they didn’t try that package again the rest of the game.

These two questions seemed like they worked well together.

In a strict sense for the first question, no, I don’t think Nebraska will get kicked out because of their AAU status. They lost certification because the AAU changed some of their calculations, not because Nebraska suddenly stopped performing research as a university.

That being saiiiiiiid.

Even in a scenario where the B1G is looking to jettison teams, I don’t see Nebraska getting cut. They’re one of the big/only draws in the midwest, which becomes rather barren football-wise west of Iowa and east of the Rockies. They’re a nice western outpost for the conference.

I hate to say it, but Rutgers is likely the chief candidate for ejection. Note, I don’t think the B1G will ever kick out a current member, but this is in the vein of the hypothetical being asked. Athletically, the Scarlet Knights have been abysmal in the B1G. They have had some success here and there, and made March Madness last year, but overall, they’ve not been great. Add in that the Big Ten fairly well controlled New Jersey and by extension the New York TV market prior to their addition, and I just don’t see what they bring to the table.

YES. He looks like a creepy ventriloquist doll came to life and grew up, and his facial hair (including eyebrows and widows peak) have been painted on.

Unnerving.

I never knew that your pump would slow down if someone was using the pump on the opposite side. Huh. TIL.

Still, I don’t really find this to be that offensive. Personally, I try to keep my distance from people (I don’t really like people), but the nice thing with a gas station is even a car on the other side has the whole pump between me and them. Not quite the same as being shoulder-to-shoulder with someone at the Beaver Stadium troughs, ya know?

Family Feud is thebomb.com, and I encourage all of you to log on. On a scale of 1-10 on the lameness scale, I give it a -47.

I also love that every single question being asked can have the answers summarized with a single picture:

Gosh I’m going to be upset if they add Miami and Florida State. Neither school is AAU, neither school is contiguous, and truthfully neither school has been all that good athletically for some time now. If the ACC gets raided, and the B1G comes away with THOSE two, I dunno man. Just seems like a wasted opportunity. Also, adding 7 more schools results in 23 members, which seems odd (GET IT).

ANYWAY.

As far as divisions go, here we go:

East

Rutgers Maryland Miami FSU Penn State

Central

Ohio State Michigan Michigan State Indiana Purdue Notre Dame

Midwest

Nebraska Iowa Illinois Northwestern Wisconsin Minnesota

West

UCLA USC Oregon Stanford Washington Cal

Honestly, with 23/24 teams, I don’t see how it wouldn’t end up with four divisions, otherwise scheduling becomes too cumbersome. These divisions would promote regional travel, and keep several marquis matchups intact. The East only has 5 teams, however, and so in this setup I’d imagine the B1G would look to add another team. Pitt perhaps? One of UVA, UNC, Duke, Georgia Tech maybe?

As for the second part of your question, I don’t see how the most embarrassing call couldn’t have been Pitt. It’s like when you’re a kid, and your big brother refuses to play with you. Every time he relents, and you do play, you end up crying with a bloody nose. So he just would rather not deal with you and your annoyances. So what do you do? You go to mommy, who orders your brother to play with you.

Pitt has made no secrets about trying to schedule Penn State in perpetuity, and Penn State has made no secrets about saying “nah.” Narduzzi constantly tosses barbs at Franklin, and the B1G in general. Having them come with their tail between their legs asking for admission must have been *chef’s kiss.*