The Atlantic Coast Conference voted Friday morning to invite Cal, Stanford and SMU, dramatically expanding its geographic footprint to the West Coast for a marginal increase in revenue that can be used to mollify disgruntled current members. The additions of two schools in Northern California and one in Texas will bring the North Carolina-based league's total membership to 18 schools, including Notre Dame, which remains a football independent.

"This will help the ACC in multiple ways," ACC commissioner Jim Phillips told WRAL. Presidents and chancellors at each of the 15 schools had a vote and 12 were needed to invite the schools, who come with sterling academic reputations but no sustained recent success in the all-important sports of football and men's basketball. The ACC has been seeking ways to increase its bottom line as the SEC and Big Ten have surged ahead in revenue generation through significant additions and record-setting television rights agreements. The SEC will have 16 teams, including Texas and Oklahoma from the Big 12, in 2024. The Big Ten will have 18 teams, including Oregon, USC, UCLA and Washington from the Pac-12, in 2024. The expansion vote comes after weeks of debate and outright opposition from some corners. Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina and NC State did not support expansion a few weeks ago, according to multiple reports. ESPN reported that NC State backed expansion Friday. A meeting scheduled for earlier in the week was postponed after a deadly shooting Monday on UNC's campus.

Legendary UNC women's soccer coach Anson Dorrance denounced the plan. The leaders of UNC-Chapel Hill's Board of Trustees sent a letter Thursday night saying a "strong majority" of the 13-member board opposes expansion.

"The travel distances for routine in-conference competitive play are too great for this arrangement to make sense for our student athletes, coaches, alumni and fans," wrote David L. Boliek, Jr., and John P. Preyer, the chair and vice chair of the UNC-CH Board of Trustees. "Furthermore, the economics of this newly imagined transcontinental conference do not sufficiently address the income disparity ACC members face."

Pac-12 members Cal and Stanford are available to join the ACC for the 2024-25 season as their league has no television contract or grant of rights in effect at that time. Eight of the league's members have announced their departures four to the Big Ten and four to the Big 12 leaving Cal and Stanford with few options.

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