Mark Long, a sports writer for the Associated Press.

Florida State has customized its lawsuit against the Atlantic Coast Conference.

On Monday, the Seminoles submitted a revised accusation against the league claiming that ex-commissioner John Swofford prioritized his son’s interests while working for television partner Raycom Sports, resulting in significant financial losses for member schools.

Florida State University has updated their initial complaint submitted to the Leon County Circuit Court after the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) amended their own document, which accused the university of violating their contract. The ACC alleges that FSU went against their obligations by taking legal action against the agreement that binds them to the conference for the next twelve years.

The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) filed a lawsuit against the Florida State Board of Trustees in North Carolina at the end of December. The ACC is requesting that the court recognizes the grant of rights as a legitimate and binding contract. Florida State is attempting to leave the conference without paying over $500 million in exit fees and penalties, hoping for a swift and effortless process.

There has been a back-and-forth between the sides, with the Seminoles now making their own accusations. This updated version refuted multiple claims made by the league and raised concerns about the legality of the ACC’s complaint. A significant point was the focus on Swofford’s familial connections with Raycom, a local sports network located in North Carolina.

The complaint from FSU now includes the term “self-dealing,” claiming that ACC schools are missing out on $82 million annually in revenue from their Tier II and Tier III media rights due to the conference’s agreement with Raycom.

Per the allegation, in 2008, Chad Swofford held the position of business development director at Raycom Sports. During this time, the Southeastern Conference sold its media rights to ESPN and excluded Raycom from its TV agreement for the first time in over 20 years.

In 2010, when the ACC’s media rights were being bid on, Florida State claims that John Swofford ensured that ESPN and FOX included Raycom in the package.

“After the smoke dissipated, Swofford convinced ESPN to make a separate ‘sublicensing agreement’ with Raycom Sports using the ACC members’ Tier II and Tier III media rights as leverage. In this arrangement, ESPN subleased a content package to Raycom Sports, receiving a reported $50 million annually in return.”

As per the accusation, Chad Swofford was elevated to the role of Senior Director for New Media and Business Development at Raycom in June 2012. He was subsequently promoted to the position of Vice President and General Manager for ACC Digital in 2015.

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AP college football can be found on two websites: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll.

Source: wralsportsfan.com