consider a zipper model with dividing up the schools? One potential issue I could see the schools having is not having relatively equal access to the important states (i.e. GA, FL, and TX). If the ACC creates a TX pod and southern pod, then most teams would have to wait at least 4 years before having an opportunity to playing a conference game in that part of the country.

If the ACC is willing to discontinue the FSU-Miami series as an annual conference game, then could that mean all the other instate rivalries or interstate rivalries have equal potential to no longer being played annually? If not, then that would mean protected cross-pod games would need to be established which could suggest that the ACC would go with a zipper model to divide up the schools into the 4 pods.