Virginia football learns its 2027 conference opponents

After receiving favorable ACC schedules for two straight seasons, the Virginia football program will take a step up in competition in 2027.

The Cavaliers will play five conference road games, including a trip to last year's national runner-up, Miami. Virginia hasn't faced the Hurricanes since 2023.

2027 @ACCFootball Conference opponents#GoHoos 🔶⚔️🔷 pic.twitter.com/W0WrODjfBP
— Virginia Football (@UVAFootball) September 16, 2026

Virginia's home schedule is also daunting, with dates against Louisville, SMU, Pittsburgh, and state rival Virginia Tech at Scott Stadium. The Cavaliers will visit North Carolina, Stanford, Georgia Tech, Miami , nd Boston College.

Specific dates for those games will be announced next spring. The ACC announced each school's list of conference opponents on Wednesday afternoon.

Also on Virginia's 2027 schedule are nonconference dates with Arkansas State (Aug. 28) and William & Mary (Sept. 25). The Cavaliers will also have one additional nonconference opponent from a Power 4 Conference, to be announced in the future.

It will be a much tougher slate than the Cavaliers faced in 2025, when they won the first outright regular-season ACC title in school history and won 11 games for the first time, including a Gator Bowl victory over Missouri, or in 2026.

This year's schedule features only one opponent (SMU) currently ranked in the AP Top 25. The Cavaliers have also avoided facing Miami or Clemson in 2025 or '26 and do not face Louisville, Pittsburgh, or Georgia Tech this fall.

Sixteen of the ACC's 17 schools (all except Clemson) will play nine conference games in 2027. The league is gradually moving to a nine-game conference schedule and will fully implement it for the 2028 season. Each school will also be required to face at least one opponent from another Power 4 school.

Virginia went 7-1 in conference games in 2025 and reached the ACC championship game before dropping an overtime rematch to Duke in Charlotte. The Cavaliers defeated ACC rival NC State 34-8 in their 2026 season opener.

They then routed Norfolk State 59-3 last Friday to begin a three-game nonconference swing that continues with this Saturday night's neutral-site clash with West Virginia in Charlotte before hosting Delaware next Saturday. They will conclude their regular season with eight conference games, beginning with a trip to Florida State on Oct. 3.

For the past two seasons, Virginia coach Tony Elliott has loaded up on veteran transfer players, several of whom will exhaust their eligibility this fall. Although Elliott and his staff have made significant high school recruiting inroads, they may try to bring in more experience this off-season to navigate a tougher schedule.

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