And now it’s officially official.
Following up on reports that first surfaced Tuesday night, the ACC announced Wednesday morning that the conference’s “Council of Presidents has unanimously voted to accept the University of Louisville as its newest member.” The release made sure to note that the move came after the school submitted a letter of application.
As expected, there was no mention of when Louisville would officially join the ACC. While Big East bylaws state that a 27-month waiting period is required, it’s highly likely the UofL will join in 2014, the same year Maryland bolts for the Big Ten.
Below are some of the statements from the involved parties regarding the somewhat surprising development:
North Carolina chancellor Holden Thorp, chair of the ACC Council of Presidents
“The University of Louisville will be a terrific member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. We welcome them as full partners into the ACC.”
ACC commissioner John Swofford
“With its aggressive approach to excellence in every respect, the University of Louisville will enhance our league’s culture and commitment to the cornerstones we were founded on 60 years ago. The University of Louisville is an outstanding addition to the Atlantic Coast Conference and I commend the Council of Presidents for continuing to position our league for the long-term future. If you look at what has been done over the last 15 months, the ACC has only gotten stronger with the additions of Louisville, Notre Dame, Pitt and Syracuse.”
Louisville president Dr. James Ramsey
“The University of Louisville is honored to join the ACC, a conference with a long history of excellence in athletics and academics. The ACC will be a great home for UofL and our commitment to great academics, groundbreaking research and top-notch athletic teams.”
Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich
“When it became apparent to us that we needed to make a move, the ACC is the perfect fit for us and we are so elated to be joining this prestigious conference. Under John Swofford’s leadership, the ACC continues to prosper. We sincerely appreciate this opportunity. This will open so many more doors for us both athletically for all of our sports programs, and academically for our university. What I really like about this move is it’s terrific for our fans, with the proximity of the institutions and we never have to leave the Eastern time zone. This is a credit to everyone at the University of Louisville and our community, as we have all pulled together to position ourselves for this opportunity. It’s amazing what has happened here over the last 15 years. We appreciate so much what the Big East conference has meant to us.”