UNC's 2017 Football Schedule Is Released

With the ACC finalizing the league schedule for the 2017 football season, North Carolina’s slate is now complete.

The Tar Heels will host seven games at Kenan Stadium and play five on the road, including a nonconference game at Old Dominion. UNC will host non-ACC teams California and Western Carolina as well as Notre Dame, which is an ACC member in everything but football.

The nonconference portion of the schedule had already been determined, so it was the league slate the schools around the league were waiting for.

The Tar Heels' open date will be Nov. 4, a week later into the season than this past fall. UNC plays one Thursday game, Nov. 9 at Pittsburgh, the other 11 are on Saturdays. There are no back-to-back road games on the schedule.

Here is a quick look at UNC's schedule and opponents for the 2017 season:

California Golden Bears

Sep. 2

2016: 5-7 overall, 3-6 Pac-12

Notes: The Bears hired Wisconsin defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox as their new head coach, so an improvement on defense is expected. But it can’t get much worse. Cal finished No. 125 in total defense out of 128 schools allowing 518 yards per game and No. 127 in scoring defense, allowing 42.6 points per contest. In only three games did the Bears allow fewer than 40 points in a game. UNC will return the game by visiting Berkley in 2018.

Louisville Cardinals

Sept. 9

2016: 9-4 overall, 7-1 ACC

Notes: The Cardinals went from being the talk of the nation to dropping their last three games, two were blowout losses to Houston and LSU and the other was a blown 10-point lead at home to Kentucky. But, the Cards have the Heisman Trophy winner (Lamar Jackson) back and could again challenge for the ACC Atlantic title. This will be their first meeting with UNC as a member of the ACC.

@ Old Dominion Monarchs

Sept. 16

2016: 10-3 overall, 7-1 CUSA (won Bahamas Bowl)

Notes: The Monarchs started playing football again in 2009 after a 69-year stretch of not having a team. ODU visited UNC in 2013 and lost 80-20 in a game ODU coach Bobby Wilder suggested the fourth quarter be played with a running clock. The Monarchs scored 50 or more points four times last season and 40 or more 6 or more times. Foreman Field, which will be completely renovated, seats just 22,000 fans.

Duke Blue Devils

Sept. 23

2016: 4-8 overall, 1-7 ACC

Notes: The Blue Devils’ only ACC win was over UNC on a night the Tar Heels blew a 14-0 lead, and really never recovered the rest of the season. Duke suffered a ton of injuries and got a lot of young players reps, so expected Duke to be more competitive this season.

@Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Sept. 30

2016: 9-4 overall, 4-4 ACC

Notes: The Yellow Jackets rebounded well from a difficult 2015 season and could be as good this coming fall. The Tar Heels must go to Atlanta, where they finally ended a very long losing skid in 2015 with the greatest come-from-behind (21 points) victory in UNC history.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Oct. 7

2016: 4-8

Notes: The Irish won just four games last season but went 2-3 versus the ACC, but those three losses were by a total of 13 points. Notre Dame also had losses by 3 points at Texas and 1 points to Navy. So, the Irish weren’t far from having a very different season. The Irish averaged just more than 30 points per game but have a new offensive coordinator, Chip Long, who was previously at Memphis. A Quan Sturdivant interception return for a touchdown and late Cam Sexton TD helped the Tar Heel beat Notre Dame, 29-24, at Kenan the last time Notre Dame visited in 2008.

Virginia Cavaliers

Oct. 14

2016: 2-10 overall, 1-7 ACC

Notes: The Cavaliers lost their final 7 games, including a 35-14 decision to UNC in Charlottesville. They lost their last three games by a total of 76 points. UVa will be projected to finish last in the ACC Coastal Division once again.

@Virginia Tech Hokies

Oct. 21

2016: 10-4 overall, 6-2 ACC

Notes: The Hokies captured the Coastal Division crown in Justin Fuente’s first season at the helm, and with plenty of parts returning, they may be the favorite again this next season. Tech crushed Carolina, 34-3, in what is known as the “Hurricane Game,” and rode it to the division title.

Miami Hurricanes

Oct. 28

2016: 9-4 overall, 5-3 ACC (beat W. VA in bowl)

Notes: This past fall was an odd season for the Hurricanes. They won their first four games before losing four in a row and then finishing the season on a five-game winning streak. Included in the losses was a 20-10 home loss to UNC. The Hurricanes must replace QB Brad Kaaya, but there’s plenty of talent in place for Mark Richt in his second season.

Nov. 4 - Bye Week

@Pittsburgh Panthers

Nov. 9

2016: 8-5 overall, 5-3 ACC

Notes: The Tar Heels are 4-0 versus Pitt since the Panthers joined the ACC, but the win have been by a combined 20 points, including last season’s last-second 37-36 victory at Kenan Stadium. Pitt will go into next season with a lot of questions, as it lost its top three skill players on offense, so there’s some unknown at this time. This game is on a Thursday night.

Western Carolina Catamounts

Nov. 18

2016: 2-9 overall, 1-7 Southern Conference (FCS)

Notes: The Catamounts closed their season in competitive fashion losing 41-33 at South Carolina, but also had a 52-7 loss at East Carolina on the resume. The wins were over Gardner-Webb and VMI by 3 points.

@ N.C. State Wolfpack

Nov. 25

2016: 7-6 overall, 3-5 ACC

Notes: The Wolfpack only qualified for a bowl after clobbering the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill in the season finale, and the Pack should be improved this coming season. State had a very good defense this year, and while the home teams haven’t fared well in this series of late, this will be a tough trip for the Tar Heels.