Holmoe Deserves Credit
Reading through the article I linked above and reading between the lines, it appears to me that ESPN had a hefty hand in getting the ACC to change it's stance on BYU.
1. ESPN knows that ACC OOC in conference games are going to cut it on national television for ratings.
2. ESPN knows that ACC (as a whole) is likely the worse of the contract conferences as it pertains to football and overall ratings show a lack of interest in games that don't involve FSU, Clemson, GT.
3. ESPN wants the Notre Dame / BYU series to continue, but those games don't mean as much if BYU isn't considered at least a step above the rest of the noncontract conferences as an independent or can't continue with Notre Dame playing an ACC schedule ICW games against the PAC, B1G and Navy.
4. Since the ACC would be less likely to be able to schedule teams from the PAC, B12, B1G because of their 9 game conference schedules, ESPN would much rather have ACC teams scheduling BYU, then noncontract conference schools except where rivalries may be involved (Miami - UCF, ECU - UNC, etc.).
5. BYU has a national audience and ESPN / ACC know this and would be stupid not to take advantage of it.
6. It behooves ESPN to help BYU in every way they can get good future schedules against quality opponents from the contract conferences.
So, this is more about "perception" then it is reality and this is more about what's good for ESPN / ACC, then it is about accepting BYU as an equal.
Because BYU is an independent school, ESPN can up the ante without breaking the bank when it comes to media rights with the Cougars.
That's why the AAC is in a bad spot and as many have said on here, they keep us down just enough to not have to spend more money, great exposure not withstanding.