During his call of Saturday night’s ACC Championship Game between Duke and Louisville, ESPN’s Dick Vitale called out the ACC for its failure to adapt to the modern game — specifically with NIL and the transfer portal.
In the first half, color analyst Cory Alexander noted how he thought Louisville, who entered the game against Duke with a 27-6 record, had flown under the radar.
“I’m not sure people recognize how good of a team this is,” Alexander said of the Cardinals. “And they’re down a number of players.”
“That’s a great point you made there, Cory,” Vitale said. “Because, you know why? People have looked at the ACC in a down year. They look basically at three teams in this league, in terms of when you talk about Clemson, talk about Louisville and Duke. And they look at the rest — those aren’t Quad 1 wins when you win those games against those people. It’s amazing. This league’s gotta do a better job of handling the NIL and the transfer portal and get stronger. This conference, for years, was the best. And I’m telling you right now, it has taken a real hit.”
Dick Vitale calls on the ACC to adapt better to modern college sports.
“This league’s gotta do a better job of handling the NIL and the Transfer Portal and get stronger. This conference, for years, was the best. And I’m telling you right now, it has taken a real hit.” pic.twitter.com/SLLhJvGNI6
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 16, 2025
Play-by-play man Dave O’Brien supported Vitale’s argument.
“To your point, Louisville is Duke’s first ranked opponent since Dec. 4, when they faced No. 2, Auburn,” O’Brien said.
Interestingly, this is not a problem unique to ACC Basketball. Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney has been a frequent target of criticism for his use — or lack thereof — of the transfer portal.
The modern rules have been a target of frequent criticism from college coaches and analysts alike.
That said, Vitale is not wrong. Far from it, in fact.
Regardless of what one thinks of the system and the new rules, they are a very real part of college sports and will be for the foreseeable future. If coaches wish to not only continue to coach college athletics but also compete for championships, adapting to those rules is essential.
