ACC football schedule includes Notre Dame, 10 conference games

Notre Dame will play in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season as part of a plan to play 10 league games and start the week of Sept. 7, alterations brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ACC’s university presidents approved a plan Wednesday for an 11-game schedule, including one nonconference game, and for pushing back the league championship game from Dec. 5 to either Dec. 12 or 19.

Notre Dame will play in a football conference for the first time in the 133-year history of the proudly independent program — if the season is played. The COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to wipe out the fall season, but the biggest conferences are taking steps to try to mitigate potential disruptions to keep football on the slate.

Notre Dame’s 10-game ACC schedule includes Clemson at home. The school and the league agreed to equally share TV revenue — including the Fighting Irish’s deal with NBC as an independent — among the 15 schools.