[Giants]

A conference schedule of OSU, WSU, SMU, Rice, Tulane, and Army would have an immediate negative impact on recruiting for almost all, if not all, of Stanford's Olympic sports.    In the end it might turn out to be the only option.   

FWIW all those schools are great institutions.  They're just not the right combination for keeping Stanford at national prominence in college sports.  I understand anything Stanford does right now should be viewed as possibly a temporary fix.   However the damage to recruiting with this conference schedule would have a longer lasting effect on recruiting.

Those in charge at Stanford think the ACC is their best choice right now.  The head football coach thinks the ACC is Stanford's best choice right now.  I would bet most Stanford Olympic sports athletes would choose the ACC with the travel implications over conference teams like Army and Tulane.

For what it's worth, I don't disagree with you, to the extent the conference evolved no further. But I seriously doubt that group of eight would be the end of it, or the only eight for long. The entire market is in flux. I would project that before the 2025 season even begins, there would already be new members, or an entirely new college landscape. I am concerned that the ACC will implode, leaving Stanford in the same situation it faces now, within a few years.

Anything less than membership in an existing P4 conference should be considered a complete and total disaster.  There is no satisfactory alternative to a scenario that includes Stanford among the top 68 (this figure assumes Stanford, Cal and SMU receive invitations to the ACC).  

As for the future, the ACC may lose Florida State, UNC and/or Clemson, but I think the balance of the membership would hold firm thus allowing the ACC to remain a power conference. Hopefully, by early next week, we will see a positive resolution to this issue…..

[Giants]

A conference schedule of OSU, WSU, SMU, Rice, Tulane, and Army would have an immediate negative impact on recruiting for almost all, if not all, of Stanford's Olympic sports.    In the end it might turn out to be the only option.   

FWIW all those schools are great institutions.  They're just not the right combination for keeping Stanford at national prominence in college sports.  I understand anything Stanford does right now should be viewed as possibly a temporary fix.   However the damage to recruiting with this conference schedule would have a longer lasting effect on recruiting.

Those in charge at Stanford think the ACC is their best choice right now.  The head football coach thinks the ACC is Stanford's best choice right now.  I would bet most Stanford Olympic sports athletes would choose the ACC with the travel implications over conference teams like Army and Tulane.

For what it's worth, I don't disagree with you, to the extent the conference evolved no further. But I seriously doubt that group of eight would be the end of it, or the only eight for long. The entire market is in flux. I would project that before the 2025 season even begins, there would already be new members, or an entirely new college landscape. I am concerned that the ACC will implode, leaving Stanford in the same situation it faces now, within a few years.

Anything less than membership in an existing P4 conference should be considered a complete and total disaster.  There is no satisfactory alternative to a scenario that includes Stanford among the top 68 (this figure assumes Stanford, Cal and SMU receive invitations to the ACC).  

As for the future, the ACC may lose Florida State, UNC and/or Clemson, but I think the balance of the membership would hold firm thus allowing the ACC to remain a power conference. Hopefully, by early next week, we will see a positive resolution to this issue…..