http://espn.go.com/ncaa/news/2003/0618/1570063.html Decision still not expected until end of month
ESPN.com news services
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Atlantic Coast Conference leaders met for three hours Wednesday about whether to add Miami, Syracuse and Boston College to the league but gave no timetable for another discussion.
The ACC presidents and chancellors, who have the final say on expansion, have met for eight hours in three separate teleconferences without coming to a consensus on adding the three Big East schools.
ACC spokesman Brian Morrison said league commissioner John Swofford had no comment on the issues discussed in the meeting or when another teleconference would be scheduled.
"This has been a longer process than I thought it would take,'' North Carolina State athletic director Lee Fowler said later Wednesday. "There have been things that have popped up that I thought had been resolved earlier.''
Duke and North Carolina have had questions about travel costs, student welfare and projected revenues of an ACC football title game and future TV contracts.
And Virginia is weighing political pressure from state lawmakers who want Virginia Tech included in the expansion mix.
Seven of the nine presidents and chancellors must vote in favor of expansion.
The ACC voted May 16 to pursue Miami, Syracuse and Boston College and site visits were completed in early June. However, the ACC announced Tuesday that a final vote may not come until the end of the month.
Meanwhile, no matter what happens, the Big East is going to be proactive about its future and pursue a 16-team league, a source told ESPN.com on Tuesday.
The three Big East schools would have to pay a $1 million exit fee. The penalty doubles after June 30 if the schools leave for the 2004-05 season.
"Everybody is ready for this to be over,'' said Fowler, who was on two of the three site visits. "It gets frustrating, but nobody is going to do anything until they get all the facts and feel comfortable with them.
"I assumed if we made these visits and things were good at these universities that it would just move along,'' he added. "But I still knew we had more work to do.''
That includes divisional alignment, an item in which more than 35 options have been discussed, Fowler said.
"None of this has surprised me because I've been through it in other leagues,'' said Fowler, who acknowledged getting nine schools on the same page is often difficult. "Even with great things, there are differences of opinions.''
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.