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North Carolina lawmakers threaten UNC’s, NC State’s ACC membership if league boycotts state

Matt Fortuna
A new bill says two schools’ ACC status will be threatened if the ACC boycotts North Carolina. (Getty)
A new bill says two schools’ ACC status will be threatened if the ACC boycotts North Carolina. (Getty)

North Carolina lawmakers filed a bill on Monday that would pull North Carolina and NC State from the Atlantic Coast Conference if the conference boycotted the state again amid the fallout of House Bill 2.

House Bill 728 says that if a college conference boycotts North Carolina, then state schools that are a part of that conference would be prohibited from extending the grant of media rights to that conference.

The ACC and NCAA had pulled championship events out of North Carolina until HB2 — known as the “bathroom bill” — was repealed. The bill, which was widely decried as discriminatory to the LGBTQ community, was repealed and replaced at the end of March.

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The ACC had said it would reconsider hosting conference championships in North Carolina.

“We’re taking this seriously and we’re not going to sit back idly and let them do whatever they want to North Carolina,” Rep. Mark Brody, a Republican from Union County, told WNCN, CBS’ North Carolina affiliate.

“This is a payback bill from people who supported House Bill 2,” Rep. Graig Meyer (D-Orange) told the station.

Duke and Wake Forest, as private schools, would not be affected if HB 728 became law.

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Matt Fortuna is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!