Recently, ESPN’s relationships with the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) have acquired overwhelming attention, especially after the latter’s champion team, Florida State, was snubbed by the College Football Playoff committee.
It is impossible to ignore ESPN's primary relationship with the SEC and secondary relationship with the ACC. ⬇️https://t.co/B6Gu7zLi8r
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 5, 2023
The 13-0 ACC champion – Florida State was snubbed by the College Football Playoff selection committee in favor of Michigan, Washington, Texas, and Alabama, sparking off a process of reactions.
The most notable response came from ESPN’s Booger McFarland, as he fervently defended the Seminoles.
“To me, this is a travesty to the sport,” McFarland quipped, protesting Florida State’s exclusion from the playoffs even as they carried a triumphant 13-0 ACC championship to their name.
On a broadcast that seemed devoted to justifying the entry of the one-loss Crimson Tide into the playoffs over the Seminoles, McFarland’s reaction was the highlight. The circumstance highlighted the implications of ESPN’s relationship with the ACC.
A complementary narrative to this is the Michigan sign-stealing scandal, which was dealt with differently by ESPN and the Big Ten’s broadcasting partner, Fox.
The latter exhibited a more sympathetic stance towards the Wolverines causing the disparity to manifest even more conspicuously.
Flooring all other aspects is the fact that ESPN is poised to sign an exclusive broadcasting contract with the SEC in 2024.
The close alliance between the SEC and ESPN is not new to the viewers the strong bond between the two entities at the moment is seemingly indivisible.
This becomes particularly important given that ESPN owns exclusive rights to broadcast the College Football Playoff.
ESPN’s motivations of driving ratings and prioritizing entertainment are evident in McFarland’s discussion on the Florida State snubbing saga.
“We look at this from a selfish standpoint,” the former NFL nose tackle said. “We want the best matchup, so we can say, ‘You know what this year’s semifinals wasn’t a blowout. It wasn’t a blowout like it was the last couple of years, that we got good matchups.’ I just think that’s devastating for the kids at Florida State, and I think we’re diminishing how you win.”
Panelist Joey Galloway’s objection to McFarland’s comments further demonstrated the divide.
“Don’t use the term ‘we’ when you start to give your point there, because there is not a ‘we’ in this,” Galloway said. “We don’t care about the matchup. We don’t care about who’s playing who and where they’re playing them. We’re here to get the four best teams. That is what we’ve tried to accomplish.”
"Don't use the term 'we' when you start to give your point there. There is not a WE in this. WE don't care about the matchup. WE don't care about who's playing who, and where they're playing 'em. We're here to get the four best teams."- Joey Galloway to Booger McFarland pic.twitter.com/WfPnMqBAqR
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 3, 2023
Cannonading into the mix is the fact that ESPN not only maintains part of the package for next year’s expanded 12-team field but also directly or indirectly influences the selection process.
The selection committee comprises of bigwigs such as athletic directors and former coaches and players, the head of which this year was an ACC member, Boo Corrigan from North Carolina State.
It could have been exasperating for an ACC official to watch McFarland’s lone voice campaigning for the cause on a channel that is supposed to be a partner to the ACC.
For ACC, ESPN’s treatment has created a sense of neglect, compared to the network’s handling of the SEC.
ESPN operates the ACC Network but the former operates more like a conference-branded version of ESPN 3.
A fairer representation on the panel would have been a more reasonable approach, considering the circumstances.
The inclusion of a voice more familiar with the ACC would have balanced the scales considerably.
