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Pete Thamel, ESPN
In a significant move that could continue to change the rapidly changing landscape of college sports, Clemson University filed a lawsuit against the ACC on Tuesday that foreshadows its departure from the league.
In a common plea filed in court in Pickens County, South Carolina, Clemson questioned both the ACC's entitlement and the exit fee, calling the exit penalty “unconscionable” and “unenforceable.” said.
The ACC also said that the ACC's position that the league's granting of media rights would allow the league to own media rights even after Clemson leaves the league is a “nonsense interpretation” and “erroneous,” calling it “a nonsensical interpretation” and “erroneous,” and that “the plain language of the agreement… It is inconsistent with the text.”
In its lawsuit, Clemson seeks a declaration that the ACC no longer owns the rights to Clemson games “after Clemson ceases to be a member of the ACC.” Clemson also wants the ACC withdrawal costs, estimated at $140 million, three times the ACC's operating budget, to be ruled an “unenforceable fine that violates public policy.” (In the Florida case, the total amount of rights and fees was $572 million.)
The lawsuit, filed in late December by the state of Florida, is the second filed against the ACC in recent months. Clemson's lawsuit is important because it shows that the league's two clear football powers, and the only College Football Playoff participants who play every year, both want to leave the league.
The ACC pre-emptively filed a lawsuit against Florida State University in Mecklenburg County, and the two teams are haggling over the venue.
The lawsuit was filed on the same day the College Football Playoff is expected to announce an agreement with ESPN that will further widen the financial disparity between the Big Ten and the SEC and other college sports. Under the new CFP agreement starting in 2026, teams in the Big Ten and SEC are expected to earn more than $21 million each year. ACC teams are expected to earn more than $13 million.
Clemson has made it clear that its current ACC television contract lags far behind future SEC and Big Ten contracts and looms as a deterrent for Clemson to compete at the highest level. Clemson has participated in the College Football Playoff six times, winning national titles in 2016 and 2018.
“ACC's conduct interferes with Clemson's free exercise of its rights and is fatally detrimental to Clemson's efforts to ensure that its athletic programs can continue to compete at the highest level,” the complaint alleges. “This is very important to Clemson beyond athletics.” ”
