The Clemson Tigers will open the 2027 season at home against the Georgia State Panthers, FBSchedules.com has learned.
Clemson was previously scheduled to face Georgia State on November 6, 2027 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C., which was announced in February. The two schools will now meet ten weeks earlier on Saturday, August 28, 2027, according to a copy of an amendment to the game contract obtained from Clemson University via a state public records request.
The Tigers will pay the Panthers a $1.5 million guarantee for the contest, according to a copy of the original contract.
The date adjustment is a result of the NCAA’s June decision to adopt a uniform 14‑week regular season beginning in 2027. Under the new model, FBS programs may begin most seasons during what is currently known as Week Zero—the weekend before Labor Day—which will become the standard Week 1.
The 2027 Clemson–Georgia State matchup will mark just the second meeting between the two programs. Their first came in 2014 in Clemson, where the Tigers defeated the Panthers, 28-0.
The remainder of Clemson’s 2027 non-conference schedule includes Wofford on September 11 and Notre Dame on October 30, both at home, and the regular-season finale at South Carolina on Nov. 27.
ACC opponents for the 2027 season have not yet been announced, but Clemson will be one of the league members playing eight conference contests.
Georgia State’s 2027 non-conference schedule is also set. One week after visiting Clemson, the Panthers are scheduled to host Gardner-Webb on Sept. 4. Contests at East Carolina on Sept. 11 and home against UAB on Sept. 18 complete GSU’s non-league slate next season.
Is there a yearly cycle for which team will play 4 non-conference games in the ACC?
See below, but haven’t seen anything official from the ACC yet:
https://fbschedules.com/acc-finalizes-teams-playing-eight-league-games-from-2027-32-per-report/
After losing their openers to LSU both last year and this, Clemson schedules an opener they can win.