North Carolina
ACC presidents reschedule expansion meeting following on-campus shooting at North Carolina
ACC presidents will hold a previously postponed meeting regarding potential conference expansion on Friday morning, CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd confirms. Conference presidents were set to discuss the matter Monday, but the meeting was postponed after a shooting that occurred at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill that same day.
The ACC is examining whether to add Stanford, Cal and SMU, which would bring the conference to 18 members total for football counting Notre Dame’s status as a partial member. Stanford, Cal and SMU have been linked to the ACC as expansion targets for the better part of the last month. Momentum for expansion has varied during that stretch, though talks on adding the schools at a discounted price have picked back up recently.
Adding the three schools could bring an additional $72 million annually to the ACC, with Cal and Stanford accepting limited revenue shares — believed to be around 30% or roughly $8 million per school. SMU, backed by its wealthy donor base, would forgo distribution for at least seven years in order to have a seat at the table in the power conference landscape.
The ACC requires at least 12 of 15 member schools to vote “yes” in order for any single expansion candidate to be admitted into the conference. Only four league members — Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina and NC State — were previously against expansion, per Yahoo! Sports, meaning that only one dissenting school’s vote would need to be flipped in order for expansion to receive the green light.
The potential for ACC expansion comes after several of the league’s prominent members had discussed concern over the growing financial gap between the Big Ten and SEC — both of which inked lucrative new media rights deals within the past three years — as the college football landscape continues to evolve. Leadership at Florida State has been particularly vocal on that front with some university trustees contemplating an eventual break from the ACC during a public meeting earlier in August.
The ACC is locked into a contract with ESPN that runs through 2036. The conference distributed roughly $40 million per school for the 2022 calendar year, though escalators could increase that number in the future.
Should the ACC vote in favor of expansion, it would become the latest conference to grow during the current cycle of realignment. From late July to early August, the Big 12 and Big Ten each added more schools. Those moves resulted in six more Pac-12 schools leaving the league on the heels of USC and UCLA announcing their impending departure to the Big Ten last summer. Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah were added by the Big 12; Oregon and Washington accepted invitations into the Big Ten. All of those moves take effect in 2024.
Movement on the ACC’s end could also factor into ongoing discussions regarding the College Football Playoff format as it prepares to expand from four teams to 12 beginning in the 2024 season. A model in which the field would feature the six highest-ranked conference champions plus six at-larges was previously agreed upon, but realignment could throw a wrench in those plans. CFP commissioners held a meeting in Dallas on Wednesday, and there is momentum to shift to a model that guarantees access for only the five highest-ranked champions plus seven at-large teams, according to Yahoo Sports.
Stanford and Cal currently account for two of four remaining Pac-12 schools in addition to Oregon State and Washington State. SMU is currently a member of the American Athletic Conference. Should SMU be granted membership into the ACC, it would mark the Mustangs’ return to a major conference for the first time since its run in the Southwest Conference, which played its final season of football during the 1995-96 school year before dissolving.
North Carolina
NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank
With a recent study revealing North Carolina as one of the states with the riskiest roads to travel, some may wonder how safe the roads are here in the Cape Fear region.
MarketWatch Guides, a site that provides “reviews of consumer products and services to help readers make educated purchasing decisions,” focuses in part on car insurance comparisons, vehicle safety and more.
A recent study by the site analyzed factors including annual miles driven per 100,000 system miles, percentage of rough roads and fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers. States were given a rating out of 10 points, with 10 being the most dangerous.
More: Distracted driving in Wilmington: How big of a problem is it?
North Carolina’s ranking among the most dangerous
According to the study, the states with the most dangerous drivers based on the factors studied are:
- Louisiana – 7.55/10
- California – 7.21/10
- New Mexico – 6.74/10
- Hawaii – 6.73/10
- Delaware – 6.67/10
- New Jersey – 6.53/10
- Mississippi – 6.47/10
- North Carolina – 6.39/10
- Massachusetts – 6.33/10
- Maryland and Texas – 6.26/10
According to the study, North Carolina had 32.5 fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers, but only 2.1% of rough roads, which was the lowest percentage out of the other ranked states.
For a more localized perspective, the North Carolina Department of Transportation releases annual traffic crash facts data. The most recent 2022 report includes a ranking of counties based on several factors, including reported crashes, crash severity, crash rates based on population, registered vehicles and estimated vehicle miles traveled.
The most dangerous county for drivers, ranked at No. 1 for the past five years, was Robeson County. The county had 60 fatal crashes in 2022 with 1,136 non-fatal injury crashes. The rest of the total 4,056 crashes were property-damage-only. The county with the best ranking was Hyde County, coming in at No. 100. The county had one fatal crash in 2022 and 10 non-fatal injury crashes. The county had a total of 45 crashes, the rest of which were property damage only.
More: MyReporter: Which intersections see the most red-light camera violations in Wilmington?
Here’s where the Cape Fear region counties ranked.
Brunswick County
Ranked No. 76 in 2022, Brunswick County had 25 fatal crashes and 715 non-fatal injury crashes. The total crashes for that year were 3,146. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.
New Hanover County
Ranked No. 58, New Hanover had 19 fatal crashes and 1,313 non-fatal injury crashes, both of which went down from 2021. The total crashes in New Hanover were 5,617. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.
Pender County
Ranked No. 47, Pender County had the worst ranking despite having the lowest number of crashes. The county had 12 fatal crashes and 374 non-fatal injury crashes, and a total of 1,156 crashes. The rest of the crashes were property damage only.
Iris Seaton, USA Today Network, contributed to this report.
Tropical Storm Debby already has parts of Florida under tropical storm warnings. The Florida Big Bend is currently under a Hurricane Warning. Debby is forecast to briefly strengthen into a category 1 hurricane as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico where water temperatures are near 90 degrees.
As it continues its path over land it is expected to dial back to tropical storm strength as it reaches the Carolinas mid to late next week. Moderate rainfall is possible for northeast North Carolina and southern Virginia by the end of the week.
Higher amounts of rain are possible for southernmost portions of the Outer Banks but generally models show 2-4 inches for northeast North Carolina and 1-2 inches for southern Virginia through Thursday.
Stay with News 3’s First Warning Weather Team for the latest updates as the storm develops.
The National Hurricane Center continues to monitor a tropical depression over Cuba. It’s expected to become a tropical storm later Saturday, bringing impacts to the Carolinas around the middle of next week.
Heavy rainfall and flooding are the primary impacts expected, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.
“Gusty winds are also possible, but it is too early to predict specific impacts in great detail at this time,” the weather service said.
At the same time, there is the potential for heavy rainfall and some flooding associated with front expected to stall inland this weekend.
As of 11 a.m. Saturday, the center of the tropical depression, which would be name Debby if it becomes a tropical storm, was over Cuba and moving west-northwest near 15 mph. The hurricane center said a turn toward the northwest is forecast for Saturday, followed by a northward motion on Sunday and then a slower northeastwardmotion Sunday night and Monday.
Maximum sustained winds were near 35 mph. Slow strengthening is expected throughout the day Saturday. Faster strengthening is possible Sunday, with the storm nearing hurricane strength when it reaches the Florida Gulf Coast, the hurricane center said.
STORM TRACKER: Monitor the latest tropical developments here.
Here’s a look at what we can expect in the Wilmington area, according to the latest briefing from the National Weather Service in Wilmington.
Wind
The probability of tropical storm force winds has increased, especially for the South Carolina coast. The most likely time of arrival of for northeast South Carolina is Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, and for Southeastern North Carolina is during Wednesday morning.
Rain
The potential for significant rainfall exists with 8 to 12 inches possible from near Cape Fear to portions of thenortheast South Carolina coast. Flash flooding and urban flooding are possible. Some rivers, including the North Cape Fear River and the Waccamaw River, could exceed flood stage next week.
INTERACTIVE MAP: Enter your address to see hurricanes, tropical storms that have passed nearby
Marine impacts
Rough surf, including dangerous rip currents, and hazardous marine conditions are expected this weekend and will persist into the upcoming week.
Are you prepared for a hurricane?
Hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. Even if this system won’t pose a threat to the NC coast, it’s never too early to be prepared.
GET READY: Are you prepared for a hurricane? Here’s what to know if you live in the Wilmington area.
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