After being delayed while Florida State and Georgia Tech worked to complete their respective schedules, the full 2012 ACC slate was finally released on Monday afternoon. NC State opens conference play on the road for the sixth consecutive season, this time in sunny Ozzie Guillen, Florida.
| Date | Opponent | Location |
| Aug. 31 (Fri.) | vs. Tennessee | Atlanta, Ga. |
| Sept. 8 | @ Connecticut | Storrs, Conn. |
| Sept. 15 | SOUTH ALABAMA | Raleigh, N.C. |
| Sept. 22 | THE CITADEL | Raleigh, N.C. |
| Sept. 29 | @ Miami | Miami, Fla. |
| Oct. 6 | FLORIDA STATE | Raleigh, N.C. |
| Oct. 20 | @ Maryland | College Park, Md. |
| Oct. 27 | @ North Carolina | Chapel Hill, N.C. |
| Nov. 3 | VIRGINIA | Raleigh, N.C. |
| Nov. 10 | WAKE FOREST | Raleigh, N.C. |
| Nov. 17 | @ Clemson | Clemson, S.C. |
| Nov. 24 | BOSTON COLLEGE | Raleigh, N.C. |
-- The schedule is really frontloaded this year, as three of the first four conference games are on the road, and the only home game is against one of the best teams in the Atlantic Division. Those road games are all winnable, but dang, man. And you can quote me.
-- For the first time in a while, NC State will not play in a Thursday night game.
-- South Alabama technically still resides in I-AA, but the Jaguars will count as a I-A opponent for bowl-eligibility purposes. When State eventually makes its return trip to USA--if it doesn't get bought out, anyway--the Jaguars will be full I-A members. [Update: nevermind, USA will not count as a I-A opponent after all. So we'll need seven wins for bowl eligibility again.]