‘Whatever the money dictates.’ ESPN’s Bilas explains how SEC-ACC merger could work.
As ESPN analyst Jay Bilas sees it, Texas and Oklahoma moving from the Big 12 to the Southeastern Conference — if it happens — would be a mere prelude to the even more seismic change he proposed this week: the SEC merging with the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Bilas said he first voiced this idea about a decade ago when conference realignment included Texas A&M and Missouri joining the SEC. He again voiced this idea on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” this week.
Bilas sees the ACC as a natural partner for the SEC.
“It has a great geographic fit with all the different markets,” he said Tuesday. “And there are amazing rivalries in that.”
He noted Kentucky-Louisville, Georgia-Georgia Tech, South Carolina-Clemson, Florida-Florida State and Florida-Miami.
Plus, of course, such a scenario would have Kentucky playing Duke and North Carolina in conference games.
“With the way college sports is going, consolidating power is