So there's this talk now about expanding the ACC to possibly 12 teams (adding Miami now, thereby enticing schools such as Boston College and Syracuse). I'll let thedustin.com's resident sports columnist tackle this issue further (if he'd like), but I thought I might offer some immediate comments while the topic is hot.

I'm not a big fan of the Hurricanes, and I think all we'll end up with in football is what other teams in the ACC have spent the last 10 years trying to do to Florida State - beat them. It finally happens and now we just bring in another super power to stomp everyone again. Then again, how cool was it for UNC to beat FSU 41-to-not much and how cool has it been for the Wolfpack to own FSU the last couple of years. Challenges are not bad things. (For those who know and find humor in my allegiance to FSU, I am not backing down from my support of them. I will admit that it is cool to see my alma mater beat them.)

Bringing in Miami, though, is not really the problem. The problem is the ultimate goal of having 12 teams in a conference used to playing everyone else at least once in football and twice in basketball (there are pros and cons for other sports, but my limited knowledge of them would make anything I write borderline idiotic). As a life-long North Carolinian, ACC blood runs through my veins. The tradition that the ACC possesses is second to none. I'm not eager to let go of that, and I'm not excited about the possibility of having to wait 2 years between home games against Carolina or Duke in basketball or 3-4 years in football.

Bottom line, this is a tough issue. I'm excited for the ACC, but the feeling is bittersweet at best. I don't want to lose the tradition, but then again, I never really wanted to stop playing with He-Man action figures, but I did and I think I'm better for it. Maybe the ACC will be better after expansion. I'm not sure I want to find out.