By Garrett Strunk
SouthernPigskin.com

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While the ACC has been beneficial to Boston College, monetary speaking, the relationship has thus far been one sided.

A recent Boston Globe article documented Boston College athletics since joining the ACC. It was clear that it was a good move on their part “We are a hell of a lot more competitive” BC Athletic Director Gene DeFilippo said since the conference swap of 2005. He also acknowledged that the move to the ACC was football motivated where BC has done well since their arrival.

While the ACC has been beneficial to Boston College, monetary speaking, the relationship has thus far been one sided; it’s evident by the embarrassingly small ACC/ESPN television contract that BC has not captured the populous north-east television viewing market which mostly remains staunchly uninterested in college athletics. It also appears there is not even enough interest amongst their fans to regularly sell out their 44,500 seat capacity Alumni stadium.

Thanks to Boston College’s success, the ACC has been rewarded with low attendance and low television ratings for the two ACC championship games that they were involved in and are part of the reason why the Gator bowl removed all ties to the conference, as well as the relatively small tv contract with ESPN.

Because of these things, many fans inside the ACC wish to set them free. The majority of the fault however does not fall on Boston College itself, rather the ACC brass should have known what they were getting when they extended the invite. BC’s main rivals have been left behind in Big East purgatory and the lawsuit between them and their nearest FBS neighbor; UConn has created a wound that will not soon be healed.

Before us southerns go and run them yankees off, ask yourself this: Might Boston College’s inception be a non issue if FSU and Miami were back to their former selves? Things are not as bad as they seem with BC, continuing in the Boston Globe article, the ACC commissioner John Swofford added these positive words “It’s a school with tremendous academic and athletic balance that is run extremely well…..They have made our conference stronger and fit in extremely well.”

Geographically, BC fit in better with the Big East, but academically they do “fit in extremely well” with the academic reputation that the ACC has built up over the years. You can’t fault them with the results on the field, they have been one of the ACC’s stronger football programs since expansion. I say to fellow ACC fans: Step away from the ledge, which realistic expansion candidates has a stronger, more consistent football program than BC? One, maybe two? In hindsight, maybe the ACC should have included West Virginia or Pitt in their last expansion……but if the ACC has a long term plan to attract more eyes, letting the only presence it has in the north-east just fly away would be a colossal mistake.