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Wednesday, March 6, 2013
 FSU AD discussed potential realignment
By Brent Sobleski
Realignment rumors regarding Florida State ran rampant last year. The Seminoles were supposedly on the verge of jumping to the Big 12 Conference. It never came to fruition, but Florida State will continue to consider all of its conference options.

At the time Florida State was linked with Clemson, Virginia Tech and Miami to possibly leave the ACC for the Big 12. The ACC has since stabilized by adding Notre Dame as a partial member and replaced Maryland with Louisville. The ACC also signed an exclusive contract with the Orange Bowl to be a regular participant in the game if its champion doesn't qualify for college football's new four-team playoff system.

While the ACC is relatively stable at the moment, everything could change in a hurry if the Big Ten Conference or SEC decided to poach more teams from the league. Florida State would then jump at an opportunity to join another conference. And the school's athletic director isn't ruling out the possibility:

David M. Hale
Seminoles AD juggles notion of conference realignment,
"Similarly, a move to the Big Ten or Big 12 isn't a slam dunk financially for Florida State. Issues surround TV distribution (Maryland won't immediately get a full share from the Big Ten), travel (West Virginia, for example, has had difficulty adjusting to the demands of travel in the Big 12), and, of course, the not insignificant issue of that buyout to leave the ACC, which would cost the university close to $50 million -- a number Maryland is challenging as it works its way out of the league.

In the short term, Spetman said he's confident that the ACC is moving in the right direction, and the Noles staying remains the most appealing solution. However, he said his priority is to ensure that Florida State is prepared for the next major shift.

'We've had conversations at the senior level about what we should consider,' Spetman said. 'There will be more of those conversations -- they'll continue. It's an evolution every day.'"