Charlotte 49ers Add Clemson Tigers To 2019 Football Schedule

You can't fault Charlotte 49ers head coach Brad Lambert for not building a strong future schedule for his team as they get deeper into their FBS tenure. And he's done that well: the likes of Tennessee, Kentucky and Louisville showing up in the next few years.

So it should be as no surprise that in 2019, the 49ers head down to the state of South Carolina to take on Clemson. Considering the Tigers' strong run of success under Dabo Swinney, it might be one of the more higher profile opponents Charlotte is scheduled to play.

At first glance, it appears that Clemson gets the better end of the deal: they get to "warm up" against a lesser opponent (not to the extent of Savannah State vs. Florida State, but still a game that figures to be a mismatch). However, Charlotte gets something out of it themselves: a guaranteed amount of money (relatively small, but still guaranteed) and the opportunity to line up against one of the country's better programs.

This is the second ACC program the 49ers have scheduled for a future game. They are set to visit Louisville to open next year's schedule (September 3, 2016) and were originally set to play Virginia Tech before that game was scrapped. As far as Power 5 schools, Lambert's alma mater, Kansas State (September 23, 2017), along with Tennessee (TBA 2018), are among the teams they will play this decade. Kentucky (November 21 of this year) shows up long before those games, though.

I'm interested in seeing what Charlotte will do with its remaining open dates from 2017-2019. Will they look to add on another group of Power 5 opponents (North Carolina? Duke?) or tack on a few FCS teams? Time will tell.