Rumor Mill: The Texas Longhorns Interested In The Atlantic Coast Conference. Is The ACC Being Proactive?

Since Texas A&M left the Big12, the conference's life has quickly been shortened. Suddenly another rumor has come about and it's all about the Texas Longhorns talking to the Atlantic Cost Conference! Wait, what?

From Team Speed Kills

The real shocker here is not that Texas is considering the ACC, which was floated around last week, but that the two have already started talking. "A high-ranking Texas source" essentially called the talks informal and not yet serious, but the fact that there even have been discussions is a remarkable development. The ACC would allow Texas to keep the Longhorn Network as-is, and it apparently has floated the option for a four-team pod system rather than divisions to help with scheduling. Another plus is that Texas is closer to most ACC schools than most Pac-12 schools, and the ACC is only one time zone away instead of two.

I've been talking to Bird about realignment extensively, and we've tossed around ideas about what to talk about. It's mainly been about the ACC needing to be proactive and going after the football schools of the Big East like Louisville, Cincinnati, UCONN, Syracuse, West Virginia...some kind of combination like that. But Texas? That's a surprising move put on by the ACC.

But is it the ACC being proactive? Or Texas guarding their own assets?

Texas (and ESPN) are the proud owners of the Longhorn Network. ESPN also has contractual rights to the ACC's TV contract. If Texas went to the B1G , then the Longhorn Network would probably have to fold into the BigTen Network. The Pac-12 TV contract is tied to both ESPN and Fox Sports where the games are split. I don't have enough knowledge to research why the Pac-12 would make Texas fold its TV contract into the ESPN/Fox split, but my favorite radio show, Barnhart and Durham, see that happening so we'll run with that and believe them for now.

Suddenly, it's John Swofford and the ACC in the spotlight, whether by chance or by action.

Pros to Texas coming to the ACC

- Academics align with the current schools in conference

-Good basketball, baseball, and football programs

-National exposure

-Additional recruiting pipelines

-Potential additional revenue sharing

- ACC protects itself from implosion and Florida State has more reasons to stay

Cons To Texas Coming To The ACC

-Travel costs (in addition to Boston College)

-Slobbering all over Texas

-13 teams (right now)

What do you think about this idea? I am sure I left off some pros and cons off this list. Add some of your own in the comments.