NC State plays Big Four annually under ACC’s updated football scheduling model

Yesterday the ACC announced its new football schedule model to account for the additions of Cal, Stanford, and SMU in 2024. For NC State, the big change is that Clemson is no longer an annual opponent, and has been replaced by Duke. There are 16 protected matchups league-wide under the new model, and State has three: Duke, Wake, and Carolina.

Who knew it would take expanding to the west coast to restore a little bit of tradition around here.

NC State also is one of three schools that plays both Cal and Stanford next season, with the Cardinal making the trip to Raleigh. So the Wolfpack could very well be playing against Ben Finley at Cal next fall; it’s an odd universe sometimes.

It’s three games apiece for those two. Cal on the road in ‘24 and ‘28, and at home in ‘26. Stanford at home in ‘24 and ‘30, and on the road in ‘26.

State gets SMU for the first time in 2028 in Raleigh, with a return trip the following season.