College Football Coming to CW in ACC TV Deal – The Hollywood Reporter

The CW is expanding its live sports lineup.

The Nexstar-owned broadcast network announced Thursday a four-year deal to carry 50 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) college football and basketball games starting in the fall. In total, 13 football, 28 men’s and nine women’s basketball games will be played on the CW.

The games begin with a football game on September 9 between the Pitt Panthers and the (non-ACC) Cincinnati Bearcats. As is typical for college football, the matches are shown on Saturdays. The basketball games, which continue until February, are played on Saturdays and for women on Sundays.

The deal to bring ACC games to the network marks a significant expansion of The CW’s live sports space, which was acquired by Nexstar last year. Until now, the only national sports broadcasts have been LIV Golf matches.

“We are committed to making The CW a destination for live, prime-time sporting events,” said Dennis Miller, president of The CW Network. “The ACC is home to some of the greatest football and basketball teams in the country, and we look forward to welcoming these passionate sports fans to the network as we continue to expand our audience.”

The CW acquired ACC rights through Raycom Sports, which in turn sublicensed the games from ESPN. Raycom Sports produces the games for The CW. ACC teams include the Carolina Tar Heels, Pitt Panthers, Syracuse Orange, Florida State Seminoles, Virginia Tech Hokies, Clemson Tigers, Louisville Cardinals and Boston College Eagles.

“We are thrilled to add The CW to our weekly ACC football and basketball television lineup,” added ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. “CW’s national distribution directly benefits our student-athletes, teams, alumni and fans. We appreciate the partnership between ESPN and Raycom and look forward to partnering with The CW.