NC State football is on the CW network vs. Virginia Tech. How to watch the game
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- NC State hosts Virginia Tech Saturday in an ACC matchup aired on the CW.
- ACC shifts payouts based on game viewership, impacting team revenues in 2025.
- CW's football broadcasts trail ESPN in ratings, affecting visibility and returns.
N.C. State returns home on Saturday to face Virginia Tech for its third ACC matchup of the season, but it won’t be on an ESPN-related network for the first time this fall.
The Wolfpack seeks to rebound from its 45-33 loss at Duke, which featured four turnovers, a muffed punt return and several defensive breakdowns. The Hokies, now led by interim head coach Philip Montgomery, look for their second straight win and first over an FBS opponent.
The CW will carry the matchup at 7 p.m. Saturday, a significant decision considering the ACC’s new payout model.
As part of the settlements with Clemson and Florida State, the ACC announced it was altering the payment model for league teams and shifting to one partially based on viewership. The programs included in the highest-rated contests, based on television metrics, would receive more money. Most schools received, on average, $45 million in 2023-24.
Games on ABC or ESPN networks, both owned by Disney, CBS and Fox typically feature the highest ratings.
TCU-North Carolina on Sept. 1 garnered 6.07 million viewers, according to Nielsen ratings. It was the lone game on ESPN that day and aired in primetime.
N.C. State-Virginia in Week 2 aired on ESPN2 and received 695,000 viewers.
The Wolfpack’s ACC opener at Wake Forest during Week 3 aired on ESPN during a Thursday night primetime matchup and finished just shy of 1.2 million, according to Nielsen data.
Meanwhile, last week’s Miami-South Florida game was broadcast on the CW. It was the network’s first matchup between two ranked teams, and ESPN College GameDay was on site that morning, but it only averaged 720,000 viewers. Baylor-SMU in Week 2 garnered 1.13 million, according to Sports Media Watch. The network’s record was 1.33 million viewers for South Alabama-Florida State two years ago.
The Wolfpack’s game against Campbell in Week 6 will be on ESPN+ and its matchup at Notre Dame will be on Peacock, which is a paywalled streaming service.
Networks must pay Nielsen to measure viewership. Most popular streaming services work with the company, but ESPN limits what Nielsen measures. It does not receive statistics for SEC Network, ACC Network or other subsidiaries.
Kickoff time + TV channel for the Wolfpack’s Week 5 game
The Wolfpack and Hokies will play at 7 p.m. Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh. The game will be broadcast on the CW, or WLFL in the Triangle. The CW website lists the specific channel number for each television service provider.
Other viewing options for the NC State-Virginia Tech game
fubo TV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV Stream carry the CW with their live TV packages, according to the services’ websites.
Wolfpack vs. Hokies game and TV info
Teams: N.C. State Wolfpack (3-1, 1-1 ACC) vs Virginia Tech Hokies (1-3, 0-0 ACC)
Where: Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh
Date: Saturday, Sept. 7
Time: 7 p.m.
TV: The CW
Stream: fubo TV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV Stream
Series history: The Wolfpack trails the all-time series 20-28-4, and it holds a 4-5-1 record in the last two meetings. N.C. State won two games in a row. A third consecutive win would give the program its first series threepeat since 1959, 1960 and 1963.
This story was originally published September 25, 2025 at 5:30 AM with the headline "NC State football is on the CW network vs. Virginia Tech. How to watch the game."
