The college football season begins on Sat., Aug. 27, which means it’s time to pull out your lucky jersey + start planning your tailgates. With three Atlantic Coast Conference teams in the Triangle, it can be hard to keep up. We’re here to help with important dates, players to watch, rivalry games, and more must-knows before kickoff.
🐺 NC State
- Head coach: Dave Doeren
- Kickoff: Sat., Sept. 3 at 12 p.m. at ECU
- First home game: Sat., Sept. 10 at 12:30 p.m. vs. Charleston Southern
- Homecoming: Sat., Nov. 5 vs. Wake Forest
- Last season recap: 9-3 overall
- The Pack ranked No. 13 in the Associated Press’ preseason poll ; the last year the team was ranked at the start of the season by the AP Poll was in 2003 at No. 16.
- Two players made ESPN’s list of college football’s top 100 players for 2022 : quarterback Devin Leary (No. 19) + linebacker Drake Thomas (No. 82).
🐏 UNC
- Head coach: Mack Brown
- Kickoff: Sat., Aug. 27 at 8:15 p.m. vs. Florida A&M (home)
- Homecoming: Sat., Oct. 29 vs. Pittsburgh
- Last season recap: 6-7 overall
- Wide receiver Josh Downs + cornerback Tony Grimes made ESPN’s top player list at No. 26. and No. 72, respectively.
😈 Duke
- Head coach: Mike Elko
- Kickoff: Fri., Sept. 2 at 7:30 p.m. vs. Temple (home)
- Homecoming: Sat., Oct. 1 vs. Virginia
- Last season recap: 3-9 overall
- ESPN chose returner Jaylen Stinson to be on its preseason all-conference team (which features the media’s star player predictions).
🏈 Rivalry Games
- UNC at Duke | Sat., Oct. 15 | Time TBD
- NC State at UNC | Fri., Nov. 25 | Time TBD