New-look ACC Huddle to originate from Clemson, Miami and Chapel Hill; Jimbo Fisher debuts Saturday at Clemson’s Bowman Field
East Carolina at NC State kicks off 2025 football season on ACCN on Thursday, Aug. 28
ACCN wraps up kickoff weekend with pre and postgame coverage of TCU-UNC as Bill Belichick makes his Tar Heel coaching debut in primetime on Labor Day
ACC Network will kick off Week 1 of the 2025 college football season with a six-game schedule and three ACC Huddle road shows from Thursday, Aug. 28 through Monday, Sept. 1.
The new-look ACC Huddle pregame show, which will now travel to the marquee Saturday ACC game each week, will be live from Bowman Field in Clemson, S.C. on Saturday (10 a.m. ET) before No. 4 Clemson hosts No. 9 LSU (7:30 p.m., ABC) in one of the most-anticipated matchups of the new season. Three-time ACC champion and National Championship-winning head coach Jimbo Fisher will make his ACC Huddle analyst debut alongside host Taylor Tannebaum, Clemson legend Eric Mac Lain and former Virginia Tech standout Eddie Royal. The two-hour show will be open to the public and will feature a number of enhancements this season, including a demo field, a large LED screen, analysts using iPads for telestration segments and an airstream trailer featuring a local chef.
ACC Huddle Features for Clemson (Sat., Aug. 30):
Cade Klubnik Conversation – From Roddy Jones’s 30-minute ACC Huddle Special, the Clemson quarterback discusses his motivation for this season and what he and his team have been through to get to this point.
Live with Dabo Swinney – The Clemson head coach will join ACC Huddle live to preview that night’s top-10 matchup in Death Valley against LSU.
Bill Belichick Conversation – Before making one of the most anticipated coaching debuts in college football history, Belichick sat for a conversation with ESPN’s Rece Davis in Chapel Hill to discuss his first game with UNC.
Lee Corso’s Impact – With legendary ESPN broadcaster and Florida State alum Lee Corso making his final headgear pick on Saturday’s College GameDay, ACC players and coaches share their favorite memories and offer tributes.
On Sunday, Tannebaum, Mac Lain and Royal will travel to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., for a one-hour ACC Huddle (6:30 p.m.) before No. 10 Miami renews its longstanding rivalry with No. 6 Notre Dame (7:30 p.m., ABC). The trio will also host a one-hour ACC Huddle Final Score (10:30 p.m.) postgame show from the field.
Week 1 concludes Monday, Sept. 1, when Kelsey Riggs Cuff hosts ACC Huddle (7 p.m.) with Fisher, Mark Richt and Royal from Chapel Hill, N.C., before North Carolina hosts TCU as six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach Bill Belichick makes his debut on the Tar Heels’ sideline in primetime on Labor Day on ESPN (8 p.m.). ESPN NFL analyst Tedy Bruschi, who won three Super Bowls as a member of Belichick’s New England Patriots, will make an appearance on Monday’s ACC PM while on-site for ESPN’s one-hour pregame show, among other special guests. Riggs Cuff and team will also be live from Kenan Stadium for a one-hour ACC Huddle Final Score (11 p.m.) postgame show.
Six Games on ACCN in Week 1
ACCN’s season-opening college football slate starts with NC State hosting East Carolina (7 p.m.) on Thursday, Aug. 28. The new ACC Primetime Football team will call the action as former Boston College head coach Steve Addazio joins veteran play-by-play voice Wes Durham and reporter Dana Boyle on ACCN’s top crew. The trio will also call No. 16 SMU’s season debut against East Texas A&M on Saturday night (9 p.m.).
The SMU opener, which caps a Saturday quadruple-header on ACCN, will be the first game this season to feature live audio from the ACC Game Day Operations Center in Charlotte. When a reviewable play occurs and the game is stopped for further review of the play, the ACCN audience will be able to listen to the real-time conversation among the Referee, instant replay official in the stadium, and the ACC’s Collaborative Instant Replay Official in Charlotte. The audience will also be able to see the work occurring in Charlotte. Throughout the season, Friday ESPN and Saturday night ACCN games officiated by the ACC will offer this access on replay decisions, a first of its kind in college football coverage.
ACCN’s new afternoon crews will also debut on Saturday of Week 1. Thirteen-year NFL veteran and former Virginia standout Rodney McLeod will join Jorge Sedano and reporter Victoria Arlen in his first season as an analyst. Their opening ACCN assignment is Eastern Kentucky at Louisville (3 p.m.), while newcomers Max Browne – the former Pitt quarterback – and Kendra Douglas – sideline reporter and former UNC track & field athlete – join Chris Cotter for Coastal Carolina at Virginia (6 p.m.).
New Studio Roles and Weekly Football Programming on ACCN
In addition to Fisher joining ACC Huddle, other new studio voices on ACC Network will include former Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson and former Stanford running back and Heisman Trophy finalist Bryce Love. Both Clawson and Love will be in studio in Bristol, Conn., on the opening Thursday, joining Justin Walters on ACC PM (6 p.m.), as well as ACC Huddle Final Score (10 p.m.) to recap ECU-NC State.
The start of football season will also usher in ACC Network’s new weekly fall studio programming lineup. As of Monday, Aug. 25, ACC PM moves to one-hour Monday-Thursday (6 p.m.) with a two-hour edition on Fridays (5 p.m.); Inside ACCess with Andrea Adelson and David Hale expands to one hour on Thursdays (5 p.m.); and Roddy Jones and EJ Manuel host a new twice-weekly edition of the ACC Network Football Podcast on Mondays and Wednesdays (6 p.m.).
ACCN Teams up with Alex Warren
ACC Network recently unveiled its anthem for the football season, themed to the recently-released track “Bloodline” from 2025 breakout singer-songwriter Alex Warren and featuring Jelly Roll (Watch). Additionally, Warren’s “You Can’t Stop This” will be featured across ACC Network Saturday Football Primetime promotions throughout the season.
ACC Network College Football Schedule for Week 1 (Aug. 28 – Sept. 1):
Date
Time (ET)
Program
Thu, Aug 28
5 p.m.
Inside ACCess
David Hale, Andrea Adelson
6 p.m.
ACC PM
Justin Walters, Dave Clawson, Bryce Love
7 p.m.
East Carolina at NC State Presented by Dr. Pepper
Wes Durham, Steve Addazio, Dana Boyle
10 p.m.
ACC Huddle Final Score
Justin Walters, Dave Clawson, Bryce Love
Fri, Aug 29
5 p.m.
ACC PM
Kelsey Riggs Cuff, Tom Luginbill, Mark Richt;
Taylor Tannebaum, Jimbo Fisher, Eric Mac Lain, Eddie Royal (from Clemson)
7 p.m.
Kennesaw State at Wake Forest Presented by Dr. Pepper
Chuckie Kempf, Darius Walker, Ashley Stroehlein
10 p.m.
ACC Huddle Final Score
Kelsey Riggs Cuff, Tom Luginbill, Mark Richt
Sat, Aug 30
10 a.m.
ACC Huddle (live from Clemson, S.C. – No. 9 LSU at No. 4 Clemson)
Taylor Tannebaum, Jimbo Fisher, Eric Mac Lain, Eddie Royal
Noon
Duquesne at Pitt
Clay Matvick, Chase Daniel, Marilyn Payne
3 p.m.
Eastern Kentucky at Louisville
Jorge Sedano, Rodney McLeod, Victoria Arlen
6 p.m.
Coastal Carolina at Virginia
Chris Cotter, Max Browne, Kendra Douglas
9 p.m.
ACC Primetime Football: East Texas A&M at No. 16 SMU
Wes Durham, Steve Addazio, Dana Boyle
Midnight
ACC Huddle Final Score
Kelsey Riggs Cuff, Bryce Love, Tom Luginbill, Mark Richt
Sun, Aug 31
6:30 p.m.
ACC Huddle (live from Miami Gardens, Fla. – No. 6 Notre Dame at No. 10 Miami)
Taylor Tannebaum, Eric Mac Lain, Eddie Royal
10:30 p.m.
ACC Huddle Final Score
Taylor Tannebaum, Eric Mac Lain, Eddie Royal
Mon, Sep 1
5 p.m.
ACC Network Football Podcast
Roddy Jones, EJ Manuel
6 p.m.
ACC PM
Justin Walters, Dave Clawson (Bristol); Kelsey Riggs Cuff, Jimbo Fisher, Mark Richt, Eddie Royal (Chapel Hill)
7 p.m.
ACC Huddle (live from Chapel Hill, N.C. – TCU at North Carolina)
Kelsey Riggs Cuff, Jimbo Fisher, Mark Richt, Eddie Royal
11 p.m.
ACC Huddle Final Score
Kelsey Riggs Cuff, Jimbo Fisher, Mark Richt, Eddie Royal
*Commentator schedules subject to change