The Atlantic Coast Conference revealed Tuesday that not all 17 of its football members will make the move to a nine-game conference schedule in 2026.
Instead, 12 teams will play nine games while Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech and North Carolina will have eight games in what the league called a “transition year” to its new scheduling policy.
The ACC said in a news release that the unique format for 2026 was “designed to balance competitive equity, honor existing nonconference game contracts and account for the league’s unique 17-team footprint.”
Beginning in 2027, 16 teams will play a nine-game ACC schedule and also be required to schedule one other Power 4 opponent. Because of the odd number of member institutions, one team each season will be scheduled for eight ACC games and must schedule two Power 4 opponents elsewhere.
“Today’s announcement of our 2026 football league opponents is another significant and intentional step forward for ACC Football,” commissioner Jim Phillips said in a statement. “Transitioning to a nine-game conference schedule strengthens our competitive framework, aligns us with the other Power Four conferences and provides greater consistency for our student-athletes, coaches and fans. This phased approach reflects our commitment to competitive equity, scheduling flexibility and delivering a premier football product across all 17 institutions.”
The league announced its decision to join the Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC with a nine-game conference schedule back on Sept. 22.
The ACC also said in its release that its tiebreaker policy will be updated and announced sometime before the 2026 season.
The league caught flak for 7-5 Duke winning a five-way tiebreaker among 6-2 ACC teams to qualify for the championship game against Virginia. The unranked Blue Devils upset the Cavaliers for the conference title, and come College Football Playoff selection time, two Group of Five champions — Tulane and James Madison — were ranked higher than Duke and got in the field as the No. 11 and 12 seeds.
