ACC commish Jim Phillips talks stabilizing league, NFL influence and College Football Playoff future

CHARLOTTE – ACC commissioner Jim Phillips used the word "protect" nine times during his speech at the commissioner's forum at the ACC Kickoff on July 22. 

What requires that protection? The Power 4 dynamic and where the ACC fits in. The future of the College Football Playoff. Student-athletes in the age of Name, Image and Likeness. Phillips – who has been the ACC commissioner since 2021 – said he will continue to lead with a two-part mission in mind. 

"Protect the ACC but also do what's right for college sports," Phillips said.

ACC KICKOFF: Beck's fit at Miami | FSU's rebound mission | A charming Bill Belichick?

The Power 4 conference commissioners took turns giving their respective state-of-the-conference addresses throughout the Media Day season.  

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark "doubled-down" on the 5-11 playoff model. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said the SEC is a super-conference that had "the best hand." Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti pushed a playoff expansion model with multiple automatic qualifiers. Phillips did not push an agenda – perhaps by design. He continues to work with those commissioners to sort out the future of the College Football Playoff – and he understands the pressure each conference faces. 

"When you have the people that are competing against each other making decisions, then we're all shocked we all can't figure it out," SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said. "I think our commissioner is the best at wanting what's best for the ACC and its member institutions but also caring about the players, the good of the game and what's best for the game. That's a hard line to follow."  

How Jim Phillips stabilized the ACC 

Phillips was visible at the ACC Kickoff for three days – in the hallways, shaking hands, engaged in conversations. Who knew this would be the case two years ago? 

"You never knew if you could get to the destination until you go through some of the instability that we faced," Phillips told Sporting News. "Some of that was real, but some was really artificial. That just happens when folks don't know everything that's happening.

Florida State sued the conference in 2023. Clemson followed in 2024. During the seismic realignment shift, it looked like the ACC could be the next victim. The Big 12 lost Texas and Oklahoma. The Pac-12 was reduced to two teams. Instead, the ACC added SMU, Cal and Stanford, and the lawsuits with its two major football programs were settled. 

"That's the story that's out there that hasn't been stated emphatically," Phillips said. "We did go through some tough times and some turmoil, but that's not where we finished. We finished here." 

The ACC reported a record $711 million in revenue in 2024-25, with an average of $45 million distributed to its schools. ESPN exercised its option to continue its contract with the ACC through 2035-36. 

The ACC ranks third in revenue among the Power 4 conferences, but they are closer to the SEC than the Big 12. There is an opportunity for the ACC to push forward. 

ACC football outlook for 2025 

Clemson and SMU gave the conference multiple bids in the first 12-team playoff. Miami and Syracuse won 10 games. Cam Ward was the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The 2-11 bowl record was a setback, but that will be long forgotten if the ACC performs well in a blockbuster Week 1 to start the 2025 season. Look at the matchups from Friday through Monday against Power 4 opponents, a stretch that includes the prime-time matchup all four days. 

Notre Dame and Clemson agreed to a 12-game series from 2027-38 – which considering those schools rank fifth and seventh in winning percentage since 2020, respectively, could develop into one of the best rivalries in the FBS. 

SMU – a program that is 44-19 since 2020 – made the College Football Playoff in its first year with the conference. The Mustangs could emerge as a perennial power in the league with the resources available in the Dallas market. 

Florida State finished 13-1 in 2023 before dropping to 2-10, but Miami won 10 games for the first time since 2017. The ACC needs another program to emerge as a consistent playoff team.  Pitt is the only school other than Clemson or Florida State to win the ACC since 2011. That's why it was so imperative to keep the Seminoles and Tigers in the conference. Cal and Stanford add a West Coast wing.

Comparing Power 4 conferences in CFP era 

*Denotes left for the SEC 

Plus, the NFL influence is more visible than ever. That includes a pair of general managers in Stanford's Andrew Luck – a four-time Pro Bowl selection – and Cal's Ron Rivera – who won a Super Bowl with Chicago as a player and was a two-time NFL Coach of the Year with the Carolina Panthers. Frank Reich is at Stanford, and Bill O'Brien is at Boston College. Of course, Bill Belichick is the headliner with North Carolina this season. 

"I think it's a reflection of what people think about the ACC that NFL coaches think it's a highly-regarded league and plays football at the highest level," Phillips said. "I also believe that coaches that have had NFL experience – it shows they really like working with young players. They're willing to leave professional sports to come to an enterprise that interests them." 

From the football side, the ACC is in much better shape than it was two years ago. How will that translate to the College Football Playoff? 

Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp

Jim Phillips' role in next CFP expansion 

The College Football Playoff is the dominant topic of conversation among the four commissioners, and Phillips had maintained a consistent viewpoint. He's OK with the current model and prefers the 5-9 model for 14 teams and 5-11 model for 16 teams if expansion occurs. More access for more teams is the goal. 

The ACC had two teams in the CFP in 2024 – and Miami would have been the third team in a 14-team or 16-team model. This was one year after Florida State was snubbed from the CFP in the final year of the four-team playoff. 

MORE: CFP projections | Bowl projections | Composite preseason Top 25

"The committee has a tough job, and I respect how difficult it can be with so many quality teams," Phillips said. "We have been on the wrong side of a committee decision and have also been on the right side – in either case, it's not like the committee didn't do their job. 

"This is a group that has high integrity that is trying to do what they believe is right," Phillips said. "The conversations we are having about the selection committee are healthy – although no matter what the process, there will be hard decisions for the last spot or two, which is why allowing teams to earn it on the field is critically important."

The SEC and Big Ten are at an impasse in these negotiations. The Big Ten wants a model more reliant on AQs. The SEC does not want to play nine conference games without a stronger strength-of-schedule component. The ACC also might be pressured into playing nine conference games in the future. 

"As a league, we have discussed eight vs. nine multiple times during my five years as commissioner," Phillips said. "We will go to nine games if that becomes imperative and the right thing for the ACC, but right now, we have two leagues at nine and two at eight. We'll see what happens."

Phillips continues to work behind the scenes to do what is best for the ACC – and what is best for college football while not taking too much credit that might be deserved. Phillips supported the straight seeding model change, which does not necessarily help the ACC champion on a year-to-year basis but makes more sense than the confusing format in the initial 12-team playoff. Realignment rumors persist, and the ACC will have to prove it all over again in 2025 and beyond. Yet Phillips continues to prove he's the right guy to protect this conference. 

"I think you have to lead with a really steady hand, but you also have to have believers that go with you," Phillips said. "That's what we were able to do together. It wasn't about one person." 

Look at how the state of the ACC has changed in two years. Phillips continues to protect the conference – but with the interest of college sports in mind. This is the tight-rope with no margin for error. Phillips continues to navigate that well. 

"No one knows what is going to happen in the future, but at this particular moment for us to settle our lawsuits, to be really creative and innovative as it relates to distribution of revenue and if you want more revenue – go get it," Phillips said.