The North Carolina Tar Heels have added the North Carolina A&T Aggies to their 2028 football schedule, FBSchedules.com has learned.
A copy of the football competition agreement with North Carolina A&T State University was obtained from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill via a state public records request.
North Carolina will host North Carolina A&T at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2028. The Tar Heels will pay the Aggies a $430,000 guarantee for playing the game, according to the copy of the contract.
The contract also contains a stipulation that if it’s permissible under NCAA rules, both schools mutually agree to move the game to Week Zero, which is Saturday, Aug. 26 that season. If the game is moved up, it must be done before Oct. 31, 2027, per the contract.
In order for the game to be moved to Week Zero, the contest would have to be televised nationally. Current NCAA rules state that Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) schools can only play in Week Zero if the game is televised nationally by a linear network (not streaming only).
Last season, North Carolina opened in Week Zero after their game against the Florida A&M Rattlers was moved up. The contest was nationally televised by the ACC Network.
North Carolina A&T is currently a member of the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) in the FCS. The Aggies played in the Big South Conference in 2021 and 2022.
In their first and only meeting on the gridiron, the Tar Heels defeated the Aggies 53-14 in Chapel Hill in 2015.
North Carolina A&T is the third scheduled non-conference opponent for North Carolina in 2028. Other opponents for the Tar Heels that season include South Carolina on the road on Sept. 2 and James Madison at home on Sept. 23.
North Carolina A&T is scheduled to open the 2028 season on the road against North Carolina Central on Sept. 2.
Football Schedules
Nice paycheck for a 55 mile travel.