Yep, kind feel the same way, fun to watch what is happening, but in the scheme of things, not that important. If I had to choose between being like Vanderbilt in the SEC in football or being a powerhouse in the non-P2, i think I pick the latter, might be a whole lot more fun to watch.

I'm with you. In 2003, the ACC was such a wonderful fit. The program was ready to seize it's moment, and the stakes were high- the alternative was purgatory. You could argue that the ACC membership did more for Virginia Tech across the board than it did for any other expansion school. In the ACC, the rivalries are natural. The travel is reasonable. Across all sports, the athletes encounter players from their hometowns spread across different schools. The sports aligned with what Tech had and what it wanted- and the level of competition across non-football sports was generally a step up. The academics of the other institutions were worthy. This was a slew of positive progress coming out of the Big East. And of course revenue came with the move too. For Virginia Tech, apart from leaving some rivalries, it was almost exclusively win-win. That's since been disrupted somewhat by ACC expansion. What's coming next is going to be even more disruptive- and it's ONLY about football and revenue. Whether it's SEC, B1G, or Big 12 - VT will make money. I somewhat doubt we're left out of that group, but if we are- we'll likely still come out ahead. But we'll be leaving behind an otherwise "perfect fit."

featuring top 4 in each conference and not even inviting anyone from the other conferences. That is what could kill ACC and others. We were very stupid to block the playoff expansion last year.

In terms of money, sure, no argument. But in terms of what we want to be, and our enjoyment of that? If VT were in a bowl/play off with the rest of college football instead of the money-grubbing top 30 or whatever? ** Edited by WestyHokie at 7/5/2022, 1:49:16 PM

which is what these are, not Conferences. It’s not the sports so much for me, like it or not, getting a State University on TV is very important to its overall success. We aren’t a private Ivy, we need the TV exposure to help us get better students, Grants and do research.

applications went up, SAT’s went up, GPA’s went up. Florida State has experienced an unbelievable increase from the time they were Independent to now. There is plenty of evidence that shows that improvement. Is getting your name in front of people for nationally televised games the only thing? Of course not, but it sure does help. Even JMU saw the things I described grow being in nationally televised FCS games. So yes there is a correlation, and yes it does matter.

There are a number of universities that are not football/TV schools that are still really good schools. I wonder if VT didn't have to worry so much about the sports TV money if it might commit more resources to the things you name. I have no idea how TV money is spent, so I honestly don't know. Sometimes it seems like making something more important to get more money just means the money keeps going to the thing that was created. It eats its own. As for TV exposure, I might have been more concerned about that 15 years ago. I don't know if VT's TV exposure today is near what it once was.

This does not seem to be a territorial land war like the last time. This is about cherry picking the best assets and leaving the rest to fend for themselves. In this scenario VT, along with most of the ACC, is on the outside looking in.

the LoL2 (Left out Little 2) Conferences

for a state, a rabid football fan base, that draws very well in the DC market is not going to be left behind. My most probable scenario is VT to the SEC and UVA to the B1G, but it would not shock me if one of them takes both schools. The B1G just took 2 from the same city, the SEC loves two from the same state. So while I think it’s less of a chance, us going to the same Conference would not shock me.

taking FSU, Clemson, UNC, Duke, VT and Uva. This would essentially lock the BIG out of everything south of DC. Leftover ACC schools would be NC St, GT and Miami from that footprint. I can't see the BIG going for those without others.

If UW, Oregon, Cal or Stanford do not move the needle, neither VT, nor UVA do either. Your assumption is based upon the BIG or SEC expanding based upon geography. They are currently only expanding based upon the value of each individual school. Geography is not a factor. So far....

you could have the majority of the ACC leaving. What does that do to the GOR? The Conference as we know it would not exist. Would a judge or jury hold up the GOR in that case. I will use your words, I don’t share your optimism on that. ** Edited by Stech at 7/5/2022, 1:35:59 PM

Which doesn’t appear to be the driver this time. Certainly still a factor but that will not get us close to $80M - $100M. A random guy from Richmond who didn’t attend VT/UVA will likely still watch college football if he was before.

Will pass New Jersey in 2040 census projections. Will be close to the population of Michigan. North Carolina will pass both Ohio and Illinois and be close to Pennsylvania's population in 2040. ** Edited by Old Line Hokie at 7/5/2022, 11:01:09 AM

population when proportionally compared to overall U.S. Population - just look at which states are gaining congressional seats and which ones are losing them. Even big ole California is losing a seat. Most of the mid-atlantic and southern states are gaining population much faster