Oct. 12, 2003

Statements from Swofford
Sunday's Press Conference

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) -- It didn't take long for the Atlantic Coast Conference to find a 12th member.

Less than four months after the ACC added Miami and Virginia Tech to form an 11-team league, Boston College agreed Sunday to become the 12th member. ACC commissioner John Swofford said it is not yet clear when Boston College will officially become a member.

"An 11-team league can work, but does it work in the best way you would like to it to work from a number of different angles?" Swofford said. "We found the answer to that to be no."

No guarantee of a football playoff game and scheduling quirks in a league with deep-rooted rivalries helped convince the ACC's chancellors and presidents to move swiftly to add a 12th team.

"It's almost like a suit, you put it on and wear it for a while and then you decide it needs some alterations," Clemson president James Barker said. "We began to envision ourselves in the summer as one sized league and we felt an adjustment would be wise to position us for the future."

The vote Sunday was 9-0 in support of adding the Eagles, a charter member of the Big East.

Boston College had until Nov. 1 to accept the ACC's offer, but agreed in less than four hours to jump leagues.

Big East by-laws require 27 months notice to leave that conference or face substantial exit fee. It's unclear if Boston College is willing to pay such a fee. Miami and Virginia Tech will begin ACC play next season.

The addition of Boston College will give the ACC the number of members required by the NCAA to stage a lucrative league championship football game.

Swofford said it wasn't awkward to approach Boston College again after the ACC had voted down the Eagles during the initial expansion plans.

"It became evident over the summer that was some continued interest on both parties part," Swofford said.

ACC bylaws require campus visits of each school being considered for prospective membership. That requirement was satisfied before ACC presidents initially rejected Boston College for membership in June.

"The ACC is a strong, stable conference," The Rev. William Leahy said. "The move to the ACC will generate greater revenues in the future."