Even David Teel, close ally of Swofford, is starting to fly the red flags for the ACC

I say it again.  No way the ACC last another decade with $20 Million revenue gap.  ACCN has to close it to less than $10.

I would be shocked.  Swofford HAS to go, but the ACC won't budge.

ACC is simply too late.  They waited too late to be concerned.

How essential is ACC Network? In 2013-14, ACC TV $ lagged behind SEC by $13.2M. Three years later, the difference was $173.1M. Details:https://t.co/bCPoGnRumG #Hokies #UVa

— David Teel (@DavidTeelatDP) June 27, 2018

http://www.dailypress.com/sports/dp-spt-acc-network-revenue-0628-story.html

A partnership with ESPN, the ACC Network is scheduled to launch in August 2019, its earnings potential the subject of rampant speculation and, among athletic directors, anticipation.

The ADs wonder because they’re investing millions in on-campus network production facilities. They worry because sustaining a business long-term with a fraction of competitors’ resources borders on impossible.

The revenue gap has never been larger and likely will grow until the ACC Network debuts. The overarching question is: How much can the channel bridge the gulf?

Many consider the SEC Network, born in 2014, the most successful launch in cable television annals. In its final fiscal year without the network, the conference reported $210.4 million in television and radio revenue. One year later, the SEC earned $311.8 million from TV-radio, a 48.2-percent increase.

The league’s most recent tax filing, for 2016-17, showed $409.1 million, a 94.4-percent bump over the network’s three years.

During that same time, ACC television money has risen 19.7 percent, from $197.2 million to $236 million.

Translation: In 2013-14, ACC television money lagged behind the SEC by a modest $13.2 million. Three years later, the difference was a staggering $173.1 million.

Since the SEC also has a lucrative contract with CBS, its increases can’t be solely attributed to the SEC Network. But there’s no questioning the network’s impact.

Some may recall that in February 2017 Florida State athletic director Stan Wilcox told the school’s Board of Trustees that the ACC Network could net each school $8 million-$10 million in Year 1, and $10 million-$15 million per year thereafter.

“These are all projections,” Wilcox told the board, according to 247sports.com. “It all depends on how well the network does. They are saying this network should have the same kind of return that the SEC Network has had in (its) first couple of years.”

Optimistic doesn’t begin to describe, and no one associated with the ACC Network project has echoed Wilcox, publicly or privately.

Firm answers? They won’t emerge until the conference’s 2019-20 tax return is released in the spring of 2021 — three years from now.