New leaders take charge as ACC move looms

Cal's new chancellor, Richard Lyons, begins his term July 1. A month later, Stanford's new president, Jonathan Levin, took office.

Lyons and Levin: New frontrunners for old rivals as unprecedented challenges loom on and off the pitch.

Football programs have reached a tipping point, sidelined by a seemingly surreal convergence of events:

– Their move to the ACC this summer comes amid a grueling legal battle with top football franchises Clemson and Florida State that seeks to overturn the rights-grant agreement that holds the schools together.

— Increasing financial pressures and heavy reliance on campus subsidies to balance their budgets.

– The existential legal threats facing the NCAA have led the SEC and the Big Ten to fill the leadership void and plan a future for the industry that has nothing to do with the past.

As daunting as they may be, the logistics of ACC competition are amateur hour for the Cardinals and Bears compared to navigating the turbulent landscape.

Are they ready to break with their long-standing view of college athletics and join heavyweight football schools in a revenue-sharing agreement with players?

Will they make the necessary adjustments so that recruiting efforts can succeed in a world of unlimited transfers and unlimited NIL (name, image and likeness) payments?

Will they provide the resources necessary to prepare their football teams for inclusion in a college football super league that could emerge in the next decade?

No one knows, because Lyon and Levin have not taken charge of their universities, let alone drawn up a master plan for athletics.

Football success is not impossible on either campus. In the 2000s, Cal was one of the best teams in the country. In the 2010s, Stanford won the Rose Bowls.

But both programs have become increasingly less important and relevant in a ruthless sport where winning increasingly requires an institutional commitment that is at odds with the academic missions and faculty preferences on both sides of the Bay.

A few wrong moves in the crucial next 12 to 18 months could condemn the Bears and Cardinal to a third-tier existence as college football enters its next phase.

Therefore, allow us to offer some suggestions. The following list is not long, but comprehensive. Each layer brings complexity, both on campus and across the campus.

Seize the moment

The move to the ACC, which becomes official Aug. 2, represents a new beginning for both football programs — and an opportunity to reshape their local image.

Marketing efforts have been woefully lacking for years. Stanford has no presence outside of a property on the peninsula. Cal's gaming experience needs to be improved.

Athletic departments serve as the first port of call for improvement, but campus support is essential to any significant change. Courageous thinking is required.

Of course, this strategy requires campus leaders to confront their deepest fears: that investing resources in football will turn universities into athletic schools; that enthusiasm for football will damage their academic reputations, upset their Olympic sports teams and throw the faculty into turmoil.

But the current approach, which keeps football at arm's length and sees it as a necessary evil, continues to guarantee mediocrity, continued irrelevance and, ultimately, a one-way road to the competitive abyss.

The best way to ensure the success of tennis and swimming, golf and softball in the next era of college sports? Win on Saturday.

Win on Saturday and the money will flow – not just from ticket and concession sales, but also from charity and brand extension.

The most successful alumni events in Stanford history did not take place in the Engineering Building. There were no meetings on campus. They were tailgate parties at the Rose Bowl.

Do you know what else comes from victory? Applications for admission, which reduces the admission rate and increases selectivity.

Stanford saw this firsthand during its appearance on the national stage from 2009 to 2012. Campus officials called it the “Andrew Luck effect.”

Lyons and Levin shouldn't apologize for football. You should accept it.

Make difficult decisions

The Hotline never shies away from uncomfortable topics, and eliminating sports is the most uncomfortable topic in college athletics. But Lyons needs to seriously consider shrinking the size of Cal's department.

Only football and men's basketball are profitable. In this respect, the Bears are no different than dozens of power conference schools across the country. But Cal sponsors far more sports — 30 — than most of its competitors.

Meanwhile, the Bears needed $34 million in university support last year to generate a slight surplus, according to the financial report submitted to the NCAA.

And now comes the next level challenge: Competing in the ACC while receiving less than a full share of the conference's media rights revenue for most of the 12-year agreement.

Cutting sports would reduce expenses, balance the budget and free up money for football operations.

Stanford also relies on campus support and reported an operating deficit of $21 million in fiscal year 2023. The school has the money to absorb some of the ACC's revenue, as long as Levin advocates for adequate allocation of campus dollars to athletics.

Additionally, Lyons and Levin should adopt NIL, the NCAA-approved process through which athletes can receive compensation for endorsements and promotional work.

But tacit consent is not enough. Campus leadership must make it clear to all constituents and stakeholders—board members and tenured professors alike—that NIL opportunities are not only acceptable, but encouraged and beneficial to athletes in all sports.

Start lobbying

We saved the most urgent task for last.

Bay Area schools were caught off guard by the Pac-12's implosion last summer, according to multiple conference sources. You can't make the same mistake again.

Lyons and Levin must be aware of the danger of the ACC imploding. Ultimately, Clemson and Florida State filed lawsuits to overturn the rights-grant agreement that binds them to the ACC through 2036.

If one school flees, the other will follow — and so will North Carolina, the institution most coveted by the Big Ten and the SEC.

At this point the conference would become a shell of itself…or fall apart entirely.

Then what about the bears and the cardinal?

They would have the opportunity to join Washington State and Oregon State in rebuilding the Pac-12. Or they could try to secure membership in the Big Ten alongside USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington, which are joining the conference this summer.

A six-school West Wing would work on multiple levels, reducing travel for athletes at both West Coast and Midwest schools. But further westward expansion has to make sense for Fox.

Fox controls the Big Ten's media rights through its controlling interest in the Big Ten Network and is therefore responsible for funding any realignment efforts.

Oregon and Washington received induction last summer because Fox raised the money to compensate the newcomers without dipping into the pot set aside for the other 16 members.

If Fox had believed that Cal and Stanford were worth it, they would be headed to the Big Ten and not the ACC.

Would anything change in a post-ACC world? Maybe not. But the Bears and the Cardinal cannot assume a second rejection.

Make it clear to network executives that Fox and the Big Ten would benefit from the presence of two world-class schools in the Bay Area, with all their high-tech money and thousands of Big Ten graduates.

Make it clear that full revenue sharing is not required. Oregon and Washington enter the Big Ten as semi-members. Bay Area schools should be ready to join at 25 percent.

Big Ten presidents are no obstacle. Given the option, they would happily ally themselves with the Nobel Prize heavyweights.

But they won't admit Cal and Stanford if the move results in a reduction in media revenue flowing to each school. Fox would have to cover the costs, as was the case with Oregon and Washington.

It won't be an easy sell. Lyons and Levin are businessmen. But starting this summer, if not today, they will have to become lobbyists.

You take responsibility for the future of both athletic departments. Whether you like it or not, the path to prosperity is 100 meters long.

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