Saturday brings the first full slate of the 2026 North Carolina college football season, with 18 games involving teams from across the state.
East Carolina gets the biggest stage, opening its season at No. 13 Alabama on ABC at noon. App State, Duke and Charlotte make their season debuts at home, while the small-college schedule features seven all-North Carolina matchups across the FCS, Division II and Division III levels.
Follow the full North Carolina college football schedule for Saturday, Sept. 5, below, with kickoff times, TV and streaming information, records and a few things to know before the games begin.
🔄 Last Updated: September 5, 2026 12:09 am
🏈 North Carolina College Football Games Today | Saturday, Sept. 5
Games are organized by kickoff times.
East Carolina at Alabama – 12 p.m. ET, ABC
Records: East Carolina 0-0 | Alabama 0-0
Location: Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Game Center: ECU at Alabama – time, TV and matchup info
Gardner-Webb at Wofford – 1:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Records: Gardner-Webb 0-1 | Wofford 1-0
Location: Spartanburg, S.C.
West Alabama at Lenoir-Rhyne – 3 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: West Alabama 1-0 | Lenoir-Rhyne 1-0
Location: Hickory, N.C.
Maine at Appalachian State – 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Records: Maine 1-0 | Appalachian State 0-0
Location: Boone, N.C.
Game Center: Maine at App State – time, TV and matchup info
The Citadel at Charlotte – 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Records: The Citadel 0-1 | Charlotte 0-0
Location: Charlotte, N.C.
Game Center: The Citadel at Charlotte – time, TV and matchup info
Tulane at Duke – 3:30 p.m. ET, ACC Network
Records: Tulane 0-0 | Duke 0-0
Location: Durham, N.C.
Game Center: Tulane at Duke – time, TV and matchup info
Western Carolina at Campbell – 3:30 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: Western Carolina 1-0 | Campbell 1-0
Location: Buies Creek, N.C.
Game Center: WCU at Campbell – time, TV and matchup info
Chowan at UVA Wise – 6 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: Chowan 0-1 | UVA Wise 0-1
Location: Wise, Va.
Elizabeth City State at North Carolina Central – 6 p.m. ET, MEAC Network
Records: Elizabeth City State 0-1 | North Carolina Central 0-1
Location: Durham, N.C.
Elon at Davidson – 6 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Records: Elon 1-0 | Davidson 0-1
Location: Davidson, N.C.
Game Center: Elon at Davidson – time, TV and matchup info
Guilford at Greensboro – 6 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: Guilford 0-0 | Greensboro 0-0
Location: Greensboro, N.C.
Livingstone at Virginia Union – 6 p.m. ET, CIAA Sports Network
Records: Livingstone 0-1 | Virginia Union 0-1
Location: Richmond, Va.
North Carolina Wesleyan at Averett – 6 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: North Carolina Wesleyan 0-0 | Averett 0-0
Location: Danville, Va.
North Greenville at Catawba – 6 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: North Greenville 0-0 | Catawba 1-0
Location: Salisbury, N.C.
UNC Pembroke at Fayetteville State – 6 p.m. ET, CIAA Sports Network
Records: UNC Pembroke 1-0 | Fayetteville State 1-0
Location: Fayetteville, N.C.
Shaw at Barton – 7 p.m. ET, Conference Carolinas Digital Network
Records: Shaw 0-1 | Barton 0-1
Location: Wilson, N.C.
Wingate at Delta State – 7 p.m. ET, FloCollege
Records: Wingate 0-1 | Delta State 0-1
Location: Cleveland, Miss.
Mars Hill at Winston-Salem State – 8 p.m. ET, CIAA Sports Network
Records: Mars Hill 0-0 | Winston-Salem State 0-1
Location: Winston-Salem, N.C.
👀 What to Know
🏴☠️ ECU gets the biggest stage — and an enormous challenge
Noon. ABC. No. 13 Alabama. Bryant-Denny Stadium. Four-touchdown underdog. Extreme heat possible. Welcome to the 2026 season, Pirate fans. And things don’t slow down from here, as ECU prepares for seven games this season against teams that made a bowl in 2025 – including in-state rival App State next weekend.
➡️ Get the full ECU-Alabama Game Center, including kickoff time, TV information, weather and matchup notes
⛰️ A lot of eyes on Dowell Loggains’ Year 2 debut
A sold out Kidd Brewer Stadium and a “Gold Out” crowd will welcome Appalachian State football to 2026. Preseason expectations are running high in Boone right now especially after head coach Dowell Loggains’ major roster overhaul – 60+ newcomers, including 30+ transfers.
There is plenty of excitement in the High Country, but some underlying pressure, too. After a few lean years, App State fans are ready for a substantial turnaround in Loggains’ second season. Maine provides the first measuring stick.
➡️ Our Maine-App State Game Center has more on Saturday’s matchup, including kickoff time, TV and streaming information.
⚔️ The Super Seven: North Carolina vs. North Carolina matchups
Forget conference bragging rights. Today, North Carolina college football is at war with itself. The Old North State will feature SEVEN small-college games between in-state opponents, stretching across FCS, D2 and D3:
- Western Carolina at Campbell
- Elizabeth City State at NC Central
- Elon at Davidson
- Guilford at Greensboro
- UNC Pembroke at Fayetteville State
- Shaw at Barton
- Mars Hill at Winston-Salem State
The Western Carolina at Campbell game features two of the hottest quarterbacks in the state after Lex Thomas and Kamden Sixkiller combined for eight touchdowns in their season openers. UNCP and Fayetteville State renew the Two Rivers Classic with both teams entering 1-0.
Elizabeth City State and North Carolina Central used to be conference mates in the CIAA (29 total meetings). Elon and Davidson have more than a century’s worth of history. The UNCP-Fayetteville State rivalry has a name, the Two Rivers Classic.
🐻 What can Lenoir-Rhyne do for an encore?
You can’t get much better than Lenoir-Rhyne’s 45-3 demolition of Virginia Union last week. The Bears dominated the No. 14 team in the nation (and preseason CIAA favorite) in all phases and earned themselves a new spot in the Top 25. It doesn’t get much easier this week, as 1-0 West Alabama – another perennial playoff contender – comes to Moretz Stadium for a rematch of their 2024 post-season showdown.
🥣 Somebody pass the soup – D3 football is back
Methodist kicked off the D3 season on Friday night. But the annual Soup Bowl opener between crosstown rivals Greensboro College and Guilford will make the weekend complete.
The 25th edition of the contest – which also serves as a canned food drive for local charities – will be played at Greensboro’s Pride Field under the lights. The winner gets a trophy, aptly shaped like a giant soup tureen (chef’s kiss).
News, notes and nuggets
- Western Carolina jumped into the national rankings this week, landing at No. 24 in the Stats Perform media poll (26th in the coaches poll). Lenoir-Rhyne ranks No. 21 in both the D2Football.com and the coaches poll. UNC Pembroke was just on the outside of the Top 25 in the D2 coaches poll (27th).
- Winston-Salem State has the latest kickoff involving a North Carolina team Saturday. The Rams’ home opener against Mars Hill begins at 8 p.m., offering at least some relief from the day’s projected extreme heat.
- Heat could play a major factor in games across the state and region today. Temperatures across parts of North Carolina could hit the mid-90s. Late afternoon and evening thunderstorms also are possible.
More North Carolina College Football
👉 Looking ahead: Yes, we have more North Carolina college football on Sunday, Sept. 6. Johnson C. Smith will face Albany State in the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic in Canton, Ohio. Both JCSU and Albany State won their respective conferences a year ago.
Friday rewind: It was a tough night for teams from the Old North State, as North Carolina A&T and Methodist suffered lopsided losses.
Solid opener for Wake Forest: Gio Lopez threw for 350 yards, and the Demon Deacons dispatched of Akron 38-16 on Thursday night.
