The Atlantic Coast Conference and Apple will collaborate to bring iPad Technology to ACC football sidelines and coaches booths starting with the 2024 season, it was announced today. All 17 ACC football programs will have access to conference-provided iPad Pro and iPad Air models to immediately view video playback, elevating on field performance.
In April, the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved the use of video for in-game evaluation. The large multi-touch display of iPad, combined with its performance and portability, make it the ideal solution for coaches and student-athletes to watch film in-game in an efficient and timely manner. The video provided to each team’s sideline will include the broadcast feed and camera angles from the coach’s sideline and coach’s end zone.
“The ACC continues its commitment in embracing the use of technology to elevate the performance of our student-athletes, teams, officials, and more,” said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. “We are proud to advance the sport of football and build upon our positive experiences over the last two years of testing in men’s and women’s basketball. Between our state-of-the-art ACC Game Day Operations Center, being at the forefront of testing the technology in basketball and with this year’s integration in football, we are proud of our unparalleled prioritization of technology and the positive impact it will have for our league.”
“We’re thrilled the ACC is utilizing iPad, as its unique capabilities and versatility make it the ideal solution to support coaches and student-athletes,” said Scott Brodrick, Apple’s Worldwide iPad Product Marketing. “With an unrivaled combination of advanced displays, powerful performance, portability, fast connectivity, all day battery life and versatile accessories, iPad will let coaches and players make in-game adjustments and empower athletes to compete at the highest level.”
The ACC will kick off the 2024 college football season in Dublin with a Week 0 matchup between Florida State and Georgia Tech, live on ESPN in the 2024 Aer Lingus College Football Classic at Aviva Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 24 (noon ET). Action continues in Week 1 with all 17 ACC teams taking to the field and 16 of them playing across Disney platforms over Labor Day weekend.
In addition, the conference announced the 2024 ACC Football Championship Game will kick off in primetime at 8 p.m. ET on ABC on Saturday, Dec. 7, at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. This fall will be the first featuring 17 ACC football teams and for the second consecutive season, the league’s football championship game will showcase the top two teams based on regular-season conference winning percentage.
“There will be great anticipation throughout the season as our teams compete to earn a spot in the 2024 ACC Football Championship Game. We are thrilled it will once again be played in primetime on ABC and at Bank of America Stadium directly across from our conference office headquarters,” said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips. “We look forward to an incredible 2024 ACC Football season with our 17 programs collectively playing the toughest nonconference schedule in the country in addition to each team’s eight challenging league opponents.”
The 8 p.m. ET kickoff marks the 15th time in the last 16 years that the game will be held in primetime. Since its inception in 2005, a total of 13 different teams have competed in the championship game. Last season, No. 4 Florida State emerged victorious, defeating No. 14 Louisville 16-6 to secure its fifth ACC Football Championship Game title (2005, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2023) and its 16th ACC title.
Bank of America Stadium, home of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, has hosted 13 of the last 14 ACC Football Championship Games. In 2018, an agreement was reached to keep the game in Charlotte through 2030. Excluding the 2020 game, which had limited attendance due to the pandemic, the ACC Football Championship Games at Bank of America Stadium have averaged nearly 70,000 fans in attendance. Since 2010, the ACC has had the second-highest average attendance of any Power 5 conference championship game.
The winner of the conference championship game has advanced to the National Championship Game or competed in the College Football Playoff in eight of the last 11 seasons, including two teams in 2020. The ACC has the second most football national titles over the last 11 years and is one of only two conferences with a .500 or better record in the first 10 years of the CFP.
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