but there is no question he elevated Utah's program to a fundamentally higher level, both in the short and long term.

Clemson and FSU bring a blue-blood status to the Big12 that this conference sorely needs right now, with all the eyeballs, connections, and standards in football operations/facilities. Plus, there is no guarantee the B10 or SEC would pick them up down the road.

Long term, even if Clemson and FSU doesn't stick around, this will forever cement the Big12 as the 3rd best college football conference in America by breaking up the ACC, and give the Big12 earlier access to other ACC programs, to further entrench the Big12's status as the best college basketball conference in America.