Auburn football: UNC game still planned to happen

The Peach Bowl CEO assures that the Chick-fil-A kickoff games are still on the table.

After it was reported earlier in the month that the ACC, and as a result, the North Carolina Tarheels, would be moving to a conference-only schedule for the 2020 season, there seemed to be little hope for any normalcy regarding Auburn football’s upcoming schedule.

Auburn and UNC were scheduled to face off in Week 2 of the season on September 12 as one of three Chick-fil-A Kickoff games. After the earlier report, that game seemed to be off the table, However, according to Peach Bowl CEO Gary Stokan, the plan is to play the games as scheduled.

"“We’re planning on playing all three Chick Fil-A Kickoff Games Sept. 5, 7 and 12,” Stokan told the Democrat on Monday per Brian Stultz of Auburn Wire. “We’ve heard from the commissioners in the Big 12, the SEC and the ACC that they’ll make some statements at the end of July. Not sure whether that’ll be if they’re going to play a kind of schedule or if they’re going to start in September so we just have to wait and see."

The game has consistently been one of the most hyped-up matchups of the early 2020 seasons as the Tarheels are coming off a promising season under new head coach Mack Brown and both teams were likely to be ranked when they met in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

"“In the meantime, we’re talking to all six schools in the three games, talking to the (conference commissioners’ offices), talking to Mercedes-Benz Stadium and just planning how three games are going to happen. That’s the plan right now,” Stokan said."

However, while the games are still on the table, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic will alter the game in some ways. According to Sandra Golden of 680 The Fan, the Chick-fil-A Kickoff games will be played with reduced capacity for fans.

As for the rest of Auburn’s 2020 schedule, the SEC has yet to announce any official plans for the upcoming season but they could very well follow in the footsteps of the ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12 and attempt to move to a conference-only schedule.

At the same time, Auburn now has to look for a new Week 1 opponent after the Southwestern Athletic Conference announced they would be canceling Fall sports and postponing them until Spring 2021.

With Auburn set to start their season against defending SWAC champions Alcorn State, the Tigers now have a gap in their schedule that is open for the time being.

Other than UNC and Auburn, the other two Chick-fil-A kickoff games are Flordia State vs. West Virginia on September 5 and UGA vs. Virginia two days later.