The Utah Utes and Miami Hurricanes will open the 2027 season in Las Vegas, both schools officially announced on Monday.
Utah and Miami will square off on Labor Day weekend at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, likely on either Saturday, Sept. 4, Sunday, Sept. 5, or Monday, Sept. 6. The Vegas Kickoff Classic game will be televised by an ESPN network.
“One of the great things about college football is that there are still first-time match ups like this one to capture the attention of fans across the nation,” said John Saccenti, executive director of the Vegas Kickoff Classic and SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl. “We have a frequent visitor to our city in Utah playing a national brand like Miami for the first time ever at one of the world’s greatest football venues. The Battle of the ‘U’ — the ‘U’ of the West against the ‘U’ of the South facing each other in the Sports and Entertainment Capital of the World — and we cannot wait.”
The 2027 matchup will mark the first-ever meeting between Utah and Miami.
“This is a tremendous showcase for our football program and our university to open the 2027 season on a national stage in the Vegas Kickoff Classic,” said Utah Director of Athletics Mark Harlan. “We are excited for this opportunity to match up against the Miami Hurricanes, and we extend our thanks to the Las Vegas Bowl and ESPN Events for the invitation. It is a testament to our program and our great fans to participate in this type of event, and when the time comes, we will paint Allegiant Stadium red once again.”
Allegiant Stadium is the home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders and also the UNLV Rebels. The stadium opened in 2020 and has a seating capacity of 65,000, which is expandable to 71,835.
“We are excited to kick off the 2027 season against Utah in the Vegas Kickoff Classic,” said Dan Radakovich, Miami’s Vice President/Director of Athletics. “It not only gives our program an opportunity to play a great non-conference opponent on a national stage, but also gives our fans the chance to cheer on the Hurricanes in a world-class venue at a destination location.”
Utah was previously scheduled to open the 2027 season at home against the Wyoming Cowboys. The status of that game is not currently known.
Football Schedules
Great matchup! Can’t wait! Go Utes!!!
Wouldn’t be surprised if this wound up being a conference game by then
Hopefully it doesn’t turn into a conference game
Same here Roert.
Shame it couldn’t have been hosted in SLC
Sorry Reverend Winton Dupree I am A Fan of Neutral site games & I would like to see Notre Dame have two Neutral site games in Los Angeles vs Navy in 2026 & vs Colorado in 2028 just in case Notre Dame-USC rivalry is eliminated.
Huge football game between Miami (FL) and Utah.
Should Notre Dame-USC continue it’s rivalry & start playing in September Vegas would make a fantastic neutral site in 2026.
2028 would be excellent for Notre Dame play USC in Vegas 2026 is already reserved for both Teams.
Notre Dame really needs Miami with USC at crossroads.