Because everyone has an opinion on conference expansion and the subject never seems to go away, it came up at Midnight Madness on Friday in College Park.
Former Maryland coach Gary Williams was asked his take on the ACC’s addition of Pittsburgh and Syracuse last month as the conference moved to 14 teams.
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“I figure the ACC, especially early on when everybody was talking about how everybody was going to jump to 16 right away, I think the ACC did a good job of being proactive in expansion,” Williams said. “I think this is different than the last time they expanded and the basketball coaches voted 9-0 not to expand. You can see the clout we had in the ACC. I think it’s very important, basketball-wise, that you get Syracuse and Pittsburgh in the league. The ACC’s right back as as good a conference when those guys come in. Really, I think a great football team, if there is further expansion, would be very important to the league just looking at the league overall.”
Promoting the ACC? Check. Looking out for basketball? Check. Offering some sarcasm? Check. Understanding the reality of the situation? Check.
Yep, that pretty much covers things for Williams, who said his biggest reason for coming back for the evening was to visit with the many former players in attendance for the alumni game.
—- Patrick Stevens
