ACC gave Florida State one major positive with 2026 schedule, can FSU take advantage?

The ACC released the dates for conference games on Monday evening, and Florida State fans got to see how much the conference hates the Noles. It’s no surprise since FSU sued them in 2023 (and largely won the suit), giving FSU the opportunity to make more money than they would have otherwise.

The dislike for Florida State started long before that, but the conference no longer tries to hide its bias. Nevertheless, FSU can control all that if they simply take care of business on the field. That’s something they’ve failed to do over the last two seasons, amassing a 7-17 overall record and four ACC wins.

Can Florida State take advantage of these games where they'll likely be the only game on TV?

The 2026 schedule does FSU no favors, with FSU playing on the road at Louisville and Miami in back-to-back weeks before hosting Clemson after a bye week. I’m pretty sure no other ACC team has to play a three-game gauntlet like that in the middle of the schedule.

Nevertheless, if Florida State can win some games, it puts the Noles in a prime position to capitalize on the potential viewership they can gain with their schedule.

The games against Alabama, Miami, and Clemson will do large numbers regardless. The Louisville, Pittsburgh, and Florida games will be on Friday, which are often standalone games with others playing on Saturday. That’s six of their 12 games that will likely average well over a million viewers per game. If FSU can find some success early in the season, that means more eyeballs in these situations, which ultimately means more money from the ACC viewership deal negotiated in the lawsuit against the ACC.

All the work that FSU did to get those things in the settlement could finally pay off. However, FSU must do its part and win more games than it has over the past two years.