ACC schedule includes Notre Dame, 10 con­ference games

RALEIGH, N.C. – Notre Dame will play in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season as part of a plan to play 10 league games and start the week of Sept. 7, alterations brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

The ACC Board of Directors released their official plan for seven sports programs to compete this fall. Each ACC fall sponsored sport will begin competition during the week of September 7-12. The plan is contingent on public health guidance.

If football season happens, the guidelines are specific. Each team will have 10 conference games and one non-conference opponent. All non-conference game opponents, selected by the respective school, must be played in the home state of the ACC institution, and all non-conference opponents must meet the medical protocol requirements agreed upon by the ACC.

The 11 games will be played over a 13-week stretch with each team having two bye weeks. There will only be one division and Notre Dame will be included with the ACC's schedule. The Irish will also play a 10-game conference schedule and will be eligible for the ACC Championship game, which will be played on either December 12 or 19. 

The championship game will still be held at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. Since there will be only one division, the top two teams with the highest conference-game winning percentage will play in this year's title game. 

Notre Dame will play in a football conference for the first time in the 133-year history of the proudly independent program — if the season is played. The COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to wipe out the fall season, but the biggest conferences are taking steps to try to mitigate potential disruptions to keep football on the slate.

All 15 teams will keep their eligible status for the ACC's bowl selection process. If Notre Dame wins the ACC Championship game, the Irish, too, would be eligible for the Orange Bowl. That's only if they are not selected by the College Football Playoff Committee to participate in the National Semifinals. 

Notre Dame's 10-game ACC schedule includes Clemson at home. The school and the league agreed to equally share TV revenue – including the Fighting Irish’s deal with NBC as an independent – among the 15 schools.

The Associated Press also contributed to this story.