Florida State, Clemson legal efforts to leave ACC losing momentum

Several months ago, the Florida State Seminoles and Clemson Tigers appeared to be charting a course out of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They may now be on a different path.

On Dec. 23, 2023, 20 days after the College Football Playoff selection committee controversially decided to exclude the undefeated ACC champion Florida State Seminoles from the four-team postseason tournament, the university's Board of Trustees filed a lawsuit in the Florida Circuit Court (Leon County), seeking a judicial order relieving it of its contractual obligation to remain in the ACC.

Approximately three months later, Clemson filed a similar lawsuit in South Carolina.

The stated impetus behind the universities' legal actions was discontentment with the ACC's generation and sharing of media revenue. The conference entered into an agreement with ESPN, which, according to Florida State and Clemson, will lead to the schools receiving $40 million less per year than the universities comprising the Big Ten and SEC.

The ACC contends Florida State and Clemson are in breach of contracts they signed twice in the past decade — written agreements that require the universities to remain in the conference.

FSU and Clemson have vigorously litigated their claims in court. Liam Rooney of the Tallahassee Democrat reported that, as of mid-September, Florida State had spent over $3 million on legal fees in the case against the ACC.

Although the parties maintained aggressive, antagonistic positions , they recently commenced court-ordered mediation. That mediation appears to have engendered the possibility of a settlement that would result in the universities remaining in the ACC.

Per reporting from the Associated Press , and The State (South Carolina's second-largest newspaper), Florida State and Clemson have signaled a willingness to stay in the conference if ACC leaders open up separate streams of media revenue for member universities. Accordingly, conference representatives are exploring new modes of potentially increased revenue distribution.

Settlement negotiations between the parties are ongoing. In the meanwhile, the litigation proceeds , with legal maneuvering in various tribunals.

If the universities and conference are unable to settle, the pending legal actions could drag on for years . However, the postures assumed by the parties in their settlement talks strongly signal an agreement will be reached for Florida State and Clemson to stay in the ACC under more favorable financial terms.