North Carolina's 2026-27 schedule continues to come into focus as the Tar Heels draw John Calipari and Arkansas in the ACC-SEC Challenge. The December 1 showdown at the Smith Center gives Michael Malone another marquee non-conference test in his first season at UNC.
In a late-night Thursday news dump, CBS Sports Jon Rothstein announced the pairings for the 2026 ACC-SEC Challenge. North Carolina will play host to John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks, who are currently ranked 11th in ESPN's Way-Too-Early Top 25 (Jeff Borzello).
Further, Rocco Miller, who regularly has inside scheduling news, announced the dates for the various matchups of the challenge. Michael Malone and the Tar Heels will welcome the Razorbacks to the Smith Center on Tuesday, December 1.
Given the news of Arkansas' visit to Chapel Hill, we now know 11 of UNC's non-conference opponents. In addition to Arkansas, the Tar Heels will play at least five other high major opponents - Georgia (Nov. 13), West Virginia (Nov. 27), Georgetown (Dec. 12), Kentucky (Dec. 19), and Butler (date not announced).
In addition to those six high major opponents, North Carolina will host Western Carolina (Nov. 2), Wofford (Nov. 6), Wyoming (Nov. 10), Marshall (Nov. 20), and The Citadel (Dec. 21).
NCAA Men's Basketball moves from 31 up to 32 regular season games in 2026-27, meaning UNC still has three outstanding non-conference games to be announced.
Those games pair with the 18 ACC games. On May 28, the conference announced the conference matchups for the upcoming season. Of the other 17 ACC teams, each team plays two other teams both home and away (one annual partner and one rotating), 14 teams just once (seven teams home only, seven teams road only), and the final team not at all. North Carolina will face Duke and Louisville both home and away, California, Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, SMU, Stanford, and Virginia at home only, Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest away only, and Clemson not at all in the regular season.
UNC vs. Arkansas History
North Carolina is 8-3 all-time vs. Arkansas, including winning five straight games. This matchup will mark the first time that the teams have matched up in the John Calipari era. The most recent matchup was at Battle 4 Atlantis in the 2023-24 season where the Tar Heels won 87-72.
The most recent postseason matchup was the 2nd Round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament as the Tar Heels were on the way to their most recent National Championship. Roy Williams' club rallied from down five with under 3:00 remaining to score the final 12 points of the game and win 72-60.
History of ACC-SEC Challenge
2026 marks year four of the ACC-SEC Challenge, following the dissolution of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge after the 2022-23 season. In the inaugural edition, the teams tied at seven wins apiece. Since, the SEC has dominated including an overwhelming 14-2 victory in 2024 followed by a narrow 9-7 victory last season.
UNC is 2-1 in the event. Their results:
- 2023: (17)UNC 100, (10)Tennessee 92 | Chapel Hill, NC
- 2024: (20)UNC 79, (10)Alabama 92 | Chapel Hill, NC
- 2025: (16)UNC 67, (18)Kentucky 64 | Lexington, KY
