4 ACC schools that can become Auburn rivals in the SEC
Auburn football and the rest of the SEC could see four exciting additions in the future in the form of Florida State, Clemson, Miami, and North Carolina should the ACC’s “Magnificent 7” figure out a way to disband the Atlantic Coast Conference for good.
Clemson, FSU, Miami, UNC, NC State, Virginia & Virginia Tech are “The Magnificent 7” ACC schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ. These schools, @RossDellenger reported, have met in past several months, w/lawyers examining grant-of-rights to determine just how unbreakable it is.…
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) May 15, 2023
Mike Farrell Sports’ Luke Brumm relayed that the three historical football powers and UNC, one of college hoops’ most storied programs, would have a mutual interest with the Southeastern Conference should more conference realignment come in the wake of the ACC’s demise.
“There would likely be mutual interests between these schools and the conference,” Brumm prefaced before saying, “The SEC makes the most sense here and would be the premier conference if they joined.”
Auburn football would benefit from potential SEC additions
Already with Texas and Oklahoma set to join the conference in 2024, Auburn football will be benefitting from the changes that SEC realignment is set to bring. Both the Longhorns and Sooners have fanbases willing to travel, boosting the local economy on gameday, and the additions of UNC, Miami, Florida State, and Clemson would do the same in future Saturdays.
Particularly in Miami’s case, Tiger fans would have increased opportunities to add exciting travel plans to their calendar every year. Hard Rock Stadium would be an AU home game if the Hurricanes ever hosted the orange and blue.
In the case of North Carolina, the SEC would expand into another southern state. That development makes the Tar Heels one of the more valuable additions culturally and market share-wise. If you ask this writer, bumping Missouri to facilitate Duke — who, it should be noted, is not one of the schools included in the “Magnificent 7” looking to break up the ACC — and keeping the Tar Heels and Blue Devils in the same conference would be the best move the SEC can make.