With Hurricane Florence bearing down on the Carolinas, University of North Carolina officials announced Tuesday that the UCF-UNC football game scheduled for Saturday in Chapel Hill, N.C. will not be played.
“First and foremost, our thoughts are with everyone who may be affected by this storm,” UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics Danny White said. “The priority must be safety for everyone in the path of the hurricane. Having been through similar situations the past two years, we certainly understand this decision. We wish UNC the best of luck through this storm and for the rest of the year.”
North Carolina and UCF officials stated any tickets purchased through the respective school will be refunded automatically and as quickly as possible. There is no need to contact either school’s ticket office regarding refunds.
UNC and UCF will continue to discuss the feasibility of playing the game at a later date this season. Also, it is unlikely the Knights will be able to replace the North Carolina contest with another game as the Knights don’t have a true open date. UCF’s only open weekend during the 2018 regular season falls on the weekend of Oct. 27. However, the Knights are scheduled to play on Thurs. Nov. 1 vs. Temple.
“I’m confident our student-athletes will adjust to this change,” UCF head coach Josh Heupel said. “Many of them have, unfortunately, been through similar scenarios here the last two seasons. Our concern is with the safety of everyone being affected by the storm. Our team will turn its focus toward the game with FAU and we look forward to seeing all of Knight Nation back out at Spectrum Stadium next Friday.”