Clemson files lawsuit against the ACC

Clemson University filed a lawsuit today against the Atlantic Coast Conference, alleging the university should not have to pay a $140 million penalty to withdraw its conference membership. The lawsuit for Clemson, by three law firms for the university, was filed today in the Pickens County Common Pleas Court.  It comes at a time of speculation that Clemson will leave the ACC to join, perhaps, the SEC –the Southeastern Conference.  Clemson seeks a declaratory judgement that it does not owe any fiduciary duties to the ACC and has not breached any legal duty or obligation it might owe to that conference.  Clemson also maintains that “As a result of the lucrative deals struck by the Big Ten and the SEC, which have made them two top-earning conferences, the revenue gap between them and the other college athletic conferences, including the ACC, will grow larger with the passage of time – to an estimated average of $30 million per member institution per year.  (And) as the revenue gap widens over the coming years, Clemson will fall behind its peer institutions.”  Clemson further asserts that in 2022 alone, the Big Ten’s total revenue from its media deal and other sources was reportedly $845.6 million, and the SEC’s total revenue from the media deal was $617 million.  The annual payout to each member of the three conferences was reported as follows:

Big Ten:  $58.8 million

SEC: $49.9 million; and

ACC:  $37.9 million to $41.3 million.