CFB: Georgia Tech releases 2022 schedule

ATLANTA — Georgia Tech will open the 2022 season against Clemson at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

The Atlantic Coast Conference released schedules for member schools on Monday evening.

Tech's home slate is highlighted by games against Clemson, Ole Miss, Virginia and Miami (Fla.) and a total of nine contests against teams that were invited to bowls in 2021 (including three New Year’s Six game participants).

The 12-game slate begins with Georgia Tech’s 2022 “Mayhem at Mercedes-Benz Stadium” game on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 5 versus longtime rival Clemson. The 87th edition of the Tech-Clemson rivalry will not only be the second edition of Tech’s six-game “Mayhem at Mercedes-Benz Stadium” series but will also be a part of the renowned Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game series, marking the first-ever conference matchup in the annual slate of premier opening-weekend college football games.

Last season, the Yellow Jackets opened the “Mayhem at Mercedes-Benz Stadium” series with a resounding 45-22 triumph over No. 20 North Carolina in front of a raucous crowd at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the state-of-the-art home of the National Football League’s Atlanta Falcons located in downtown Atlanta, less than a mile from Georgia Tech’s campus.

Georgia Tech will serve as the home team for the showdown versus Clemson and tickets will be included in Tech’s season-ticket packages.

Five days after “Mayhem at Mercedes-Benz Stadium,” the Jackets return to Bobby Dodd Stadium to face Western Carolina on Saturday, Sept. 10. Tech will wrap up a season-opening three-game homestand on Sept. 17 when it hosts 2022 Sugar Bowl participant Ole Miss.

After opening the season with three-straight home games, the Jackets travel for challenging road contests at UCF (Sept. 24) and defending ACC champion and Peach Bowl participant Pitt (Oct. 1), then wrap up the first half of the season at home against Duke (Oct. 8).

Following a bye at the exact midpoint of the season (Oct. 15), the Yellow Jackets will open the second half of the campaign with a nationally televised Thursday night game against Virginia (Oct. 20). Tech will then play four of its final five contests away from home, beginning with back-to-back road dates at Florida State (Oct. 29) and Virginia Tech (Nov. 5). After hosting Miami (Fla.) for their home finale on Nov. 12, the Jackets close the season at North Carolina (Nov. 19) and Georgia (Nov. 26).

After finishing with the nation’s most difficult schedule in 2021 with a combined opponents’ record of 100-56 (.641), Georgia Tech appears to have one of college football’s most challenging slates again in ’22. In addition to facing nine teams that earned bowl-eligibility in 2021, five of Tech’s 12 opponents this season won at least nine games in ‘21, including each of their first four NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision opponents (Clemson, Ole Miss, UCF and Pitt). Additionally, this season marks the first time in school history that the Yellow Jackets will have just one home game among their final five contests of the regular season.

Kickoff times and TV arrangements for the first three games of the season will be announced in the spring, with times and TV for the remaining nine games announced no earlier than 12 days before each contest in the fall.

Georgia Tech officially begins preparations for the 2022 season when spring practice begins on Tuesday, Feb. 22. The Yellow Jackets annual White vs. Gold spring game will be held on Thursday, March 17 at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The ACC announced on Monday that the spring game will kick off at 6 p.m. and be televised nationally on ACC Network.