The Clemson Tigers will open ACC play in Week 3 of the 2026 college football season Saturday when Bill Belichick's North Carolina Tar Heels visit Memorial Stadium.
It's the second straight year Clemson (1-1) and UNC (2-0) will meet on the gridiron and thus the second straight matchup between Belichick, the six-time Super Bowl winning coach, and Swinney, a two-time national championship coach with nine ACC titles.
The Tigers look far from an ACC title contender through the first two weeks of 2026. After getting blown out in a 51-10 loss at LSU in Week 1, Clemson battled through a long night and a weather delay of two hours for the second straight week to eventually beat Georgia Southern, 22-7.
The big story was freshman quarterback Tait Reynolds,
who took over for injured starter Christopher Vizzina after the third offensive series and finished the night 16-of-27 with 178 passing yards.
Nolan Hauser kicked a career-high five field goals after Vizzina led Clemson on its only touchdown drive, capping it with a 10-yard pass to T.J. Moore in the first quarter. The Tigers rushed for 150 yards primarily behind Gideon Davidson and Chris Johnson Jr. The defense held Georgia Southern to 242 yards, including 22 on the ground.
Reynolds himself had 38 rushing yards on 14 attempts, including a 16-yard scramble. He'll make his first career start for Clemson this week.
North Carolina defeated East Tennessee State, 35-3, on Saturday, just two weeks after the Tar Heels flew to Dublin, Ireland, and pulled off a 15-10 upset win over TCU. Demon June ran for three touchdowns in UNC's Week 2 win, and Billy Edwards Jr. threw for 244 yards and two touchdowns.
Here are the latest odds for Clemson-North Carolina ahead of the ACC opener for both teams.
Clemson football vs. North Carolina Week 3 game odds
Odds according to FanDuel as of Monday, Sept. 14:
- Spread: Clemson (-3.5)
- Money Line: Clemson (-172), North Carolina (+142)
- Over/Under: 44.5
Clemson vs. UNC football: TV channel, start time, streaming info
Clemson-North Carolina is scheduled for a noon ET kickoff Saturday. The game will be televised on ESPN and will stream on ESPN+ and Disney+.
Here's a game by game look at the Tigers' 2026 schedule. All times Eastern.
- Sept. 5: at LSU Tigers (L, 51-10)
- Sept. 12: vs. Georgia Southern Eagles (W, 22-7)
- Sept. 19: vs. North Carolina Tar Heels, noon, ESPN
- Sept. 25: at California Golden Bears, 10:30 p.m., ESPN
- Oct. 3: vs. Miami Hurricanes, TBA
- Oct. 17: vs. Charleston Southern Buccaneers, TBA
- Oct. 24: vs. Virginia Tech Hokies, TBA
- Oct. 31: at Florida State Seminoles, TBA
- Nov. 7: at Syracuse Orange, TBA
- Nov. 14: vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, TBA
- Nov. 20: at Duke Blue Devils, 7:30 p.m., ESPN
- Nov. 28: vs. South Carolina Gamecocks, TBA
Record: 1-1.
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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Who has the edge? Early game odds for Clemson vs North Carolina
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