Brad Brownell is absolutely beside himself. During the 2026 ACC Tipoff at the Hilton Charlotte Uptown on Wednesday, the Clemson Tigers head coach voiced his displeasure about his team not getting a crack at the North Carolina Tar Heels in ACC play. This will be the first time these two charter ACC members have not played each other during the regular season since the 1950-51 campaign.
"I don't like it. I said it last year with Virginia: I hate that we don't play everybody. I don't understand. If we're gonna play 18 games, why not play everybody once and a partner twice?" Brownell said about Clemson not facing North Carolina during league play. That's just my opinion. My opinion apparently doesn't mean a whole lot, and it probably shouldn't. But I'll reiterate that in spring meetings."
These are two likely tournament teams that have been pillars of the ACC since its inception. Clemson and North Carolina are two of the biggest athletic brands in the entire conference. Unfortunately, the ACC basketball schedule somehow found a way to screw this up. Despite there being 18 teams in the league and an 18-game schedule, North Carolina is the one team Clemson is not going to be facing...
Brownell: "That's just my opinion. My opinion apparently doesn't mean a whole lot, and it probably shouldn't. But I'll reiterate that in spring meetings." This will be the first time since 1950-51 that Clemson and UNC (founding ACC members) won't play in the regular season https://t.co/fWlfG8PSZD
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) October 7, 2026
Why won't Clemson and North Carolina play during the regular season?
With Notre Dame being a part of this league in basketball, it would make sense to have all 18 teams in the ACC play each other once, and for there to be a permanent rival. The most likely candidate for that for Clemson would obviously be Georgia Tech. They are less than 100 miles from each other. Thus, they have been recognized as Clemson's permanent rival in college basketball moving forward.
Naturally, the ACC decided to include a second "repeat" team, resulting in a "no play" for everyone. Clemson will play Florida State twice, but will avoid North Carolina altogether. Although that may help Clemson put forth a better conference record, you should want to play everyone in your league. This may be Michael Malone's first year in Chapel Hill, so maybe Brownell's team could have gotten them?
With the ACC being a banner league on the college hardwood from one generation to another, it is a shame that the schedule has devolved into this. Teams who have been part of the ACC since the conference was first created, such as Clemson, North Carolina, Virginia, and Wake Forest, should play each other at least once annually. Life keeps on evolving, but these are traditions still worth saving.
So yes, Brownell has every reason to be up in arms about not getting to play North Carolina. He has done so every season he has been in charge of the Clemson program. Why mess with that? Even though UNC is the traditional power in college basketball and Clemson is not, players and coaches come to the ACC to compete against or play for North Carolina. The schedule is an absolute cluster.
The set-up for an 18-game ACC basketball schedule was right there to be had, but the league blew it.
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