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Florida State exploring a potential ACC exit was a curious move. After all, should the school even find a way to skirt around the conference’s grant of rights agreement, there’s not a clear path to wrangle itself into a higher payday in the SEC or Big Ten.

Insiders do not believe adding Florida State to one of those conferences makes much sense, financially, despite the program’s strong brand. The Seminoles, by themselves, are not worth messing with the $60 million being handed out in revenue to SEC schools nor the $75 million getting paid out to Big Ten institutions. 

That discussion has not only changed, but Clemson joining its conference rival in filing a lawsuit against the ACC this week — challenging the grant of rights — has given new life to another potential round of realignment. 

Florida State and Clemson are a dynamic duo that could potentially trigger another shake-up across the college sports landscape. If the ‘Noles and Tigers are deemed unworthy of Big Ten or SEC membership, perhaps even the Big 12 shows interest.

In December, I wrote that Florida State extracting itself from the ACC felt like a 5-10 year process. Now, you could perhaps move that timeline up a bit since there are two saber-rattling schools challenging the league. It seems only a matter of time before the three sides come to a negotiated resolution in the nine-figure range.

Florida State and Clemson feel they can, at worst, buy their way out of the current ESPN media rights deal that runs through 2036. The penalty to leave the conference would probably be a little less than the $572 million figure Florida State administrators calculated during a December 2023 meeting. 

It’s clear Florida State and Clemson don’t want to be in the ACC. The three parties…

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There’s no way around it, Michigan football’s offense in 2024 will look different than it has the past few years.

Though the scheme may be similar, there will be changes, if for no other reason than the personnel changes — both at the player level as well as the coach level. Gone are star players such as J.J. McCarthy and Blake Corum, as well as the entire starting offensive line and the starting wideouts. The offensive coordinator is now the new head coach in Sherrone Moore and QB coach Kirk Campbell takes over the reins at OC.

There are still some holdovers — running back Donovan Edwards, tight end Colston Loveland, tackle Myles Hinton — pieces you can build around. But even if the plan of attack changes, it won’t be a wholesale change, outgoing quarterback J.J. McCarthy says.

“I would say it’s very similar to the recent years, just because it’s been working. So why would you change something that isn’t broke?” McCarthy said. “So, I would say there’ll be more nuances in the pass game with Coach Campbell being able to call plays — that’s one of the most knowledgeable, if not the most knowledgeable guy in the country, just from an offensive standpoint. And being able to let him get more leash and have reins over the play calling is going to be huge. And he’s going to mix up a lot of different things, give the defense a lot of different looks, and then (whoever) starts at quarterback, they’re going to just attack them in the run game, attack in the pass game. And it’s going to be very interesting to watch.”

The idea of Campbell being a bit more aggressive when it comes to playcalling is certainly tantalizing to Michigan football fans who have wanted to see the offense open up. However, given that Sherrone Moore, in his interim status, went conservative running the ball 32 straight…

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247Sports

Four-star linebacker Darrell Johnson, a top-50 prospect in the Class of 2025, announced his commitment to Alabama on Wednesday evening. He chose the Crimson Tide over a list of finalists that included Florida State, Tennessee, Texas A&M, UCF and USC. 

The No. 48 player nationally and No. 5 linebacker, per 247Sports, Johnson is the highest-rated prospect to join Alabama’s 2025 recruiting crop. His commitment propelled Alabama to the No. 10 spot in 247Sports’ Team Composite recruiting rankings. 

Johnson, a product of Eastman (Georgia) Dodge County High School, is also the fourth prospect to commit to Alabama and coach Kalen DeBoer in the month of March. Three of those new additions rank inside the top 100 nationally. 

“Everyone knows the type of great program that Alabama has been,” Johnson told 247Sports. “Honestly, Alabama has always been my dream school, but the fact that they have shown me and my family so much love really brought it all together for me.” 

247Sports notes that Johnson took visits to Alabama and Texas A&M in March but gave the Crimson Tide a silent commitment before leaving Tuscaloosa. As of now, he still plans on visiting Auburn, UCF, USC and Florida State. 

Johnson is an accomplished high school player, and though he’s listed as a linebacker, he could play multiple spots at the next level. Measuring in at 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, Johnson has spent time at linebacker, defensive back, quarterback and running back for Dodge County. He was an All-Region selection in 2023 after tallying 103 tackles on the defensive side of the ball. 

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For the first time since he received interest from UCLA for its head-coaching job in February, Gophers coach P.J. Fleck spoke about his decision Wednesday.

“I just love being in Minnesota. I don’t know if there’s much to say after that,” Fleck said during a news conference previewing spring practice, which begins Thursday. “I just love being here; I’ve told you that before. We built a life here, not just [to] make a living being a football coach. We’re embedded in the community. We love this place, this city. Love this university. It’s been really good to us.”

Chip Kelly resigned as UCLA’s coach Feb. 9 to become Ohio State’s offensive coordinator. Bruins athletic director Martin Jarmond had Fleck on his short list, but the Gophers coach posted a statement Feb. 10 on the X platform that he was staying at Minnesota.

On March 9, the Board of Regents approved an amended contract that will allow Fleck to make an additional $5.7 million in combined retention bonuses should he stay with Minnesota through the 2029 season. His contract calls for a total salary of $6 million per year.

Fleck, who’s entering his eighth season with the Gophers, sees the advantage that continuity can bring to a program.

“Cultural sustainability is really important for success, especially in 2024 with the way college football’s changing,” he said. “It’s really important for the development of programs.”

Skipping the spring game

The Gophers won’t have a spring game this season, and Fleck said there were multiple reasons why he chose not to hold one.

“A lot of things. Take your pick,” Fleck said.

Because of inclement weather and COVID-19, the team has not had a spring game go off as scheduled since 2017, Fleck’s first year with the program. In addition, he doesn’t want to tip his hand to opponents.

“I want to keep things inside the best I possibly can ……

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