LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – The Atlantic Coast Conference on Tuesday announced two major changes to league policy, requiring pregame availability reports for selected sports and instituting a fine structure for postgame field- and court-storming.
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips introduced the new policies at the 2025 ACC Football Kickoff media days in Charlotte.
The injury and availability report brings the ACC into line with the Big Ten and Southeastern conferences, which have similar reporting requirements for conference games. The court- and field-storming fines will still allow students and fans onto the competition surface – but only after game officials and the visiting team have exited.
“It's the right thing,” Phillips said. “It's the modernization of our conference, the modernization of college sports, and the expectations we should have to protect our student-athletes.”
More on each policy is below.
AVAILABILITY REPORTS
Starting this season:
• Football teams must submit availability reports two days before, one day before, and two hours before conference games.
• Basketball and baseball teams must report one day before and two hours before tipoff or first pitch in conference games.
All information will be made public via theACC.com.
The SEC currently requires injury reports to be made three days before kickoff. The Big Ten requires them only two hours before kickoff. The ACC's move is more extensive than either.
The NFL requires clubs to submit practice injury reports, an availability report at 4 p.m. the day prior to the scheduled game, and in-game injury reports when they become available.
Phillips said the move comes, in part, to protect players from gambling influences. It also, however, reflects growing financial pressure on conferences to preserve the credibility of the product in a legal betting environment.
Leagues are increasingly concerned about the impact of "inside information" on point spreads — especially as gambling partnerships become more entrenched in college sports media rights.
“There's stresses on our student-athletes from individuals that are trying to garner information, and sometimes it's pretty innocent because they just want to know, they're a big fan, but other times it really does trickle and lead yourself to the gambling and sports wagering kind of path,” Phillips said.
The ACC’s move follows similar steps from the Big Ten and Big 12. Phillips acknowledged that coaches didn’t exactly embrace the change — but they didn’t resist it either.
“Coaches are hard to change,” Phillips said. “But when we told them that we were doing it, no one said anything on the call. I don't know what that meant, other than they were accepting it.”
There’s no fine structure yet for schools that violate the policy, but Phillips suggested one could be added if compliance becomes an issue.
COURT STORMING
Also new this season: the ACC will fine schools for court or field storming if opposing teams or officials haven’t yet exited the competition area.
- First offense: $50,000
- Second: $100,000
- Third: $250,000
Fines will accumulate across two seasons in football and basketball, and the money will go to the league’s postgraduate scholarship fund.
Phillips pointed to recent incidents both in the ACC and around the country — including an injury to Duke basketball star Kyle Filipowski — as tipping points.
“It’s time,” he said. “This is happening more and more — in our league, in others. We have to do better.”
Clemson, which has a football routine of fans “Gathering at the Paw” after home victories, released a statement on Tuesday saying that the tradition will continue within the framework of the new conference policy, allowing opposing fans and game officials to depart before fans will be allowed onto the field.
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