Sources: ACC to begin discussing Cal, Stanford as additions - ESPN

ACC leaders are set to begin exploratory discussions on the potential additions of Cal and Stanford to the conference, sources told ESPN on Monday.

Sources cautioned that the two scheduled calls for the discussions are in the embryonic stages — one call slated with the ACC athletic directors and a separate call with the league's presidents that will play out on Monday and Tuesday.

With the Pac-12 down to just four schools after the defection of five universities on Friday, the leftover four schools — including Cal and Stanford — are scrambling to find places to land. Both have elite academic reputations and Stanford consistently has the country's top-to-bottom athletic department, but the reverberations of realignment have left them at a crossroads.

There will be headwinds to a move for Cal and Stanford to the ACC, as sources on Monday cautioned about the complexities involved.

«It's complicated,» said an ACC source. «There's a significant travel expense. I think it's going to be all over the board with both the ADs and the presidents in what they may want to do. (Cal and Stanford) would likely have to take a reduced share. Eventually, though, they're going to want to become a full share.»

Finances will be pivotal in the discussions. The ACC is locked in a television deal with ESPN through 2036 that multiple members have publicly griped about being constrictive financially for long-term success. The deal projects to put schools like FSU and Clemson nearly $30 million annually behind schools in the SEC and Big Ten.

The latest outburst came last week from Florida State, whose president and board members orchestrated a rare public outcry — threatening to leave if more money from the ACC's current deal isn't shifted toward