SMQ: Thinking radically about college football realignment in age of coronavirus
By Zach Bigalke
Atlantic Conference
- Teams: Old Dominion, Duke, East Carolina, NC State, North Carolina, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, South Carolina
- States included: 3 (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina)
- Current P5 teams: 5 (Duke, NC State, North Carolina, Clemson, South Carolina)
The last of the 16 new conferences in this realignment exercise reforges an Atlantic Coast Conference identity in this configuration that drops the Coast from the branding. In the new Atlantic Conference, five Power Five schools in the Carolinas include a couple of coastal Group of Five programs into the fold.
East Carolina likely has the most immediate potential to grow into this league, with Old Dominion bringing a Virginia element into the equation that allows for northern growth in a talent-rich part of the country. The heart of the league is the ACC group from Tobacco Row and perennial College Football Playoff threat Clemson as well as the Tigers’ Palmetto State rival from the SEC.
By keeping this conference restricted to three states, there is the potential to maintain regional play whenever travel is safe between locales. With 400 miles between Clemson and Norfolk, travel among the league schools is compact. That will help out Power Five outfits and their smaller counterparts alike as things normalize between member schools. Until further notice, though, Dabo Swinney’s crew would be the team to beat in the Atlantic Conference.