ACC will ensure survival by having at least 15 schools when FSU and Clemson leave

The ACC will ensure its survival when FSU settles its lawsuit with the conference and Clemson undoubtedly follows suit by having at least 15 schools in its ranks according to Sportskeeda's Farouk Yusuf.

"The ACC is obviously on the route to facing an existential threat amid the legal battles it's dealing with," Yusuf prefaced before saying, "This could see the league suffer the same fate as the Pac-12, which experienced an implosion last year following several departures.

"Nonetheless, the league could still keep its house in order if Clemson and FSU eventually leave. This depends on the interest its members generate from other Power Five leagues. The conference will, however, ensure it keeps a membership of at least 15 members to avoid renegotiation of its media deal by ESPN."

ACC would lose schools to SEC, Big Ten, and Big 12 but has contingency plan

If/when FSU leaves, the Seminoles and Clemson would likely be SEC-bound. UNC and UVA, which both have AAU accreditation, would join the Big Ten as basketball and academic fits. The Big 12 would likely try to poach Louisville, NC State, VA Tech, Pitt, and/or GA Tech.

There will be a big game of musical chairs played when the ACC crumbles, but unlike the Pac-12, there is a contingency plan to keep the ACC alive: Memphis, Tulane, Wazzu, Oregon State, UConn, and USF making the jump from the Group of Five ranks.

Enough ACC schools likely won't get invites to the other conferences since there's only so much revenue split current members will want to take part in, so with the Pac-2 schools and AAC programs making the jump, survival would be more than possible. The American would simply pluck programs from the Sun Belt and Conference USA, and those conferences would fold FCS schools that qualify for FBS membership into their ranks.

While the ACC's demise seemed certain, rumors of it may just be greatly exaggerated.