ACC Votes to Implement Nine-Game Conference Schedule

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Atlantic Coast Conference has officially decided on which scheduling format they will be utilizing moving forward.

The league announced Monday that their 17 members "overwhelmingly supported" moving to a nine-game conference schedule, as well as mandating playing a minimum of 10 power conference games per season.

With this move, all four power conference leagues - the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC - now have a nine-game conference schedule in place.

"We have been incredibly intentional throughout our discussions on ACC Football, including the future of our conference schedule,” commissioner Jim Phillips said in a statement. “Today, the Athletic Directors of the 17 football-playing institutions overwhelmingly supported a regular season schedule that includes nine conference games and a minimum of 10 games each year against Power 4 opponents.

“This positions the ACC as one of only two leagues committed to having every team annually play a minimum of 10 games against Power 4 teams. There will be additional discussions and more details to be determined, but today’s decision showcases the commitment and leadership of our ADs in balancing what is best for strengthening the conference and their respective programs. As specified in the Conference constitution, the model will be presented to the Faculty Athletics Representatives for formal adoption.”

According to ESPN's Andrea Adelson, the nine-game conference schedule will be fully implemented in 2027, with 16 teams playing nine league games (9+1), and a rotating team playing eight league games (8+2). Some ACC teams will start playing nine league games in 2026, although some will remain at eight to fulfill previous scheduling obligations.

Last week, it was reported that the ACC would discuss moving to either a nine-game conference slate, or adopting an "8+2" model - where the ACC would stick to their current eight-game conference schedule, but require teams to schedule two additional P4 opponents.

This move comes on the heels of the SEC finally announcing last month that they will move to a nine-game schedule, and require league members to have at least one additional P4 team on their schedule.Just hours before the announcement,Yahoo! Sports'Ross Dellenger reported that the ACC "would likely follow suit" if the SEC did wind up pulling the trigger on a nine-game schedule.

Earlier this month, Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm expressed that he was "100 percent" in favor of moving to nine games.

"I think college football, in my opinion, should, for the good of the game, try to go to where you're scheduling the best opponents every week," Brohm said. "However many games that is, of course, I've for as many as we possibly can.

"I think it's important to play good competition every week for a lot of reasons. I think it's better for your team, and I think it's more enjoyable for the fans, and I think it's better for the game of football. I hope that that continues to happen. The strength of schedule is something people look at, and we hope to do the same thing, but I'm sure probably we'll get the nine games here soon, as far as in the conference."

As it currently stands, Louisville's annual rivalry series with Kentucky is on the books until 2030. The Cardinals also have home-and-home series with Georgia (2026, 2027) and Texas A&M (2028, 2029), and have four more meetings with Notre Dame (2030, 2032, 2033, 2035) planned.

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