South Carolina football will face Virginia Tech at the 2025 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, the first meeting between the two schools since 1991. Head coach of Gamecocks Shane Beamer he is the son of the Hall of Fame head coach, Frank Beamer, who made his name as the head coach of the Hokies. Shane Beamer played (1995-99) and trained for the Hokies (2011-15) with his father.
This will be Carolina’s first appearance at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game and the first game played in Atlanta since consecutive appearances at the Georgia Dome in 2010; the SEC championship game against Auburn and the Peach Bowl against the state of Florida.
South Carolina Athletics Communications and Public Relations
The South Carolina Gamecocks and Virginia Tech Hokies are expected to meet for the first time in 34 years in the 2025 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game. The game will be played on Sunday, August 31, or Monday, September 1, 2025, at the Mercedes-Benz stadium in Atlanta. The game will be televised on ABC or ESPN. An exact launch date and time will end at a later date.
The 2025 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game will mark the 21st time Gamecocks and Hokies have played, but it will be their first encounter since 1991. South Carolina currently leads the all-time series 11-7-2, and has won the last four disputes between the two programs, including a 28-21 win in the last clash.
“The Chick-fil-A Kickoff game has often become a showcase for ACC and the SEC to face each other in a high-level competition to kick off the season,” said Bob Somers, president of Peach Bowl, Inc. ” continue that tradition and renew an old rivalry between two historic programs. “
“It is an honor to welcome Virginia Tech back to the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game after 12 years, and we look forward to hosting South Carolina for the first time in the game,” said the CEO and president of the Peach Bowl , Inc., Gary Stokan said. “It must be an intriguing confrontation with Shane Beamer training against his father’s old team. I also hope that Coach Fuente will have his Hokies ready to play against a formidable SEC opponent. “
The clash against Virginia Tech will represent South Carolina’s first appearance in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game and the Gamecocks will be the seventh different SEC program to be played in the game.
In 2025, the clash will represent the SEC’s 20th appearance at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, with the conference currently presenting a 13-2 record in the game. This will be the 15th ACC vs. SEC in the history of the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game.
“We are excited to open our 2025 season against Virginia Tech at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game,” said South Carolina Athletics Director Ray Tanner. “This will give our program the opportunity to play in one of the best showcases at the beginning of the college football season. I know our fans will enjoy this classic competition outside the conference in a first class stadium while competing for ‘The Old Leather Helmet’ trophy.”
“I thank Gary Stokan and Peach Bowl, Inc. for making this incredible opportunity available to us,” said the South Carolina coach Shane Beamer. “Whenever you open a season in an important event like the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game against a quality opponent like Virginia Tech, it’s exciting for our players, team and fans and helps in our recruiting efforts. of this game before, I know it is played in a first class manner and we are happy to be a part of it. “
Virginia Tech will make its third appearance in the game Chick-fil-A Kickoff. The Hokies fell to Alabama in their two previous appearances, when they opened the 2009 and 2013 seasons in Atlanta.
“We are excited to play the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game against South Carolina to open the 2025 season,” said Virginia Tech Athletics Director Whit Babcock. “We are looking forward to presenting our program in front of a national television audience at one of the country’s leading sports venues, the Mercedes-Benz stadium in Atlanta. I am confident that we will see a strong contingent of our fan base cheering like The Hokies. they play their inaugural game there and visit the College Football Hall of Fame that weekend. We are very confident about the strength of our programming going forward, as well as its appeal to technology fans across the country. “
“Our team is always looking forward to the opportunity to play in ‘trophy games’ and I am sure our team is happy with the chance to compete for the ‘The Old Leather Helmet’ trophy against South Carolina in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game 2025, “said Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente. “I know our players like to play in NFL stadiums and I’m sure our fans will also enjoy rooting for the Hokies while facing an SEC opponent at the Mercedes-Benz stadium.”
The teams will fight for the Old Leather Helmet Trophy, one of the newest rivalry icons in college football. Traditionally, The Old Leather Helmet winners put the helmet on the field after the game, starting with the head coach and then switching from player to player as the team celebrates their victory.
Each team will receive their own quota of tickets for the game and additional tickets will be sold at the box office of Peach Bowl, Inc. Tickets will be available for sale to the public in early 2025.
The Chick-fil-A Kickoff game averages more than 69,170 fans for each game – more than 36 bowl games of the 2019-20 Bowl season – and an additional 78.4 million viewers since 2008. Average total payouts of the team is $ 5.2 million – up from 26 bowling games during the 2019-20 bowling season – with more than $ 67 million in payments over its history.