North Carolina football scheduling bill won't go forward: official

An attempt by some North Carolina lawmakers to force the Tar Heels and NC State to play in-state schools in football won't advance any further, an official has said.

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A proposed bill in North Carolina that would have required the Tar Heels and NC State to play the state's Group of Five level schools in football and basketball will not go any further in the legislative process, North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore said, via WRAL.

House Bill 965, called "UNC Intrastate Athletic Competition," was easily passed through the House's Appropriations Committee earlier this week, but that's apparently as far as it will go.

"It's had the hearing it will have," Moore said. "It had a committee hearing. I told them they could hear it in committee, but it won't come to the floor."

The bill would have forced both North Carolina and NC State to play either East Carolina, Appalachian State, or Charlotte in football and basketball every season going forward, including prospective road games.

The plan would have required the two schools to complete a home-and-away series with all three of those Group of Five level teams over six seasons.

The bill specified the General Assembly's perceived desire to help promote economic development in the state as its motivation.

Moreover, it sought to ensure that North Carolina and NC State would play each other every season, something they already do as ACC members, but the bill's sponsors also sought to guard against the possibility of UNC potentially leaving the conference at some point in the future.

Florida State and Clemson are suing the ACC to challenge the conference's early exit fees ostensibly in an effort to leave the league, and there has been some speculation North Carolina would do likewise, although that talk appears to have cooled off.

North Carolina went 2-1 against App State in a recent series, but the schools are not scheduled to play at any point in the future. UNC hosts Charlotte in Week 2 this fall and visits the 49ers next year.

NC State will host East Carolina next season and Appalachian State in 2026, and will play on the road against ECU in 2028 and have a home-and-home set with Charlotte in 2030 and 2031.

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