At least there’s no concert this weekend…
North Carolina native Eric Church was just announced as the special guest on ESPN’s College GameDay (the college basketball edition) this weekend, as they head to Chapel Hill for what’s always a heated Tobacco Road rivalry game between the Duke Blue Devils and North Carolina Tar Heels.
He’ll join the set live to discuss the game, the college basketball season as a whole, and much more…
And I’m sure they’ll have to ask him about that wild Final Four game he witnessed in-person between the longtime rivals last year, too.
The game will be broadcast at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN Saturday evening.
Eric Church is going to be joining us when we visit Chapel Hill on Saturday 🤩 @ericchurch pic.twitter.com/19j5ACuMsx
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) March 2, 2023
If you recall during last year’s March Madness tournament, Eric canceled a concert in San Antonio, Texas pretty last minute to attend the game with his family, after he realized the two longtime, arch-rivals would be facing off in the semi-final round for the first time ever.
Of course, fans who were supposed to be at that concert were rightfully pissed, though Eric did his best to make it up to them with two free shows last September for all of the fans he cancelled on.
Eric’s an Appalachian State grad, but unfortunately, also a die-hard Carolina fan (I can say that because I’m an App State alum, too), so it was a natural pick for ESPN to have him on the show. I think we already know who he has winning this game, too.
He previously joined as a guest picker for the flagship college football edition of GameDay back in 2019.
Eric is also gearing up to hit the road for his The Outsiders Revival Tour this summer, and luckily all of his festival dates and shows don’t start until well after the tournament is over, kicking off his 2023 run on April 14th.
Though Eric was (kind of) saved from eternal scorn when the Tar Heels managed to advance to the National Championship game (and lose to Kansas) in 2022, I have a feeling the 2023 tour scheduling was planned very intentionally this year…
See you in Chapel Hill 🗣️ @CollegeGameDay pic.twitter.com/oEmT1hvrr3
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 26, 2023
Eric Church 2023 Tour Dates
* denotes festival dates
April 14* Fort Lauderdale, Fla. / Fort Lauderdale Beach Park Tortuga Music Festival
June 16* Central Point, Ore. / Jackson County Expo Rogue Music Festival
June 17* Santa Rosa, Calif. / Sonoma County Fairgrounds Country Summer Music Festival
June 22 Milwaukee, Wisc. / AF Insurance Amphitheater Elle King
June 23 Detroit, Mich. / Pine Knob Music Theatre Ashley McBryde, The Red Clay Strays
June 24 Cleveland, Ohio / Blossom Music Center Ashley McBryde, The Red Clay Strays
June 29 Charleston, S.C. / Credit One Stadium Ashley McBryde, The Red Clay Strays
June 30 Charleston, S.C. / Credit One Stadium Parker McCollum, Morgan Wade
July 1 Virginia Beach, Va. / Parker McCollum, Morgan Wade
July 6 Toronto, Ontario / Budweiser Stage Koe Wetzel, Shane Smith & The Saints
July 7 Toronto, Ontario / Budweiser Stage Koe Wetzel, Shane Smith & The Saints
July 8 Pittsburgh, Pa. / The Pavilion at Star Lake Koe Wetzel, Shane Smith & The Saints
July 14 Cincinnati, Ohio / Riverbend Music Center Travis Tritt, Muscadine Bloodline
July 15 St Louis, Mo. / Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre Travis Tritt, Muscadine Bloodline
July 23* Minot, N.D. / North Dakota State Fairgrounds North Dakota State Fair
July 27 Rogers, Ark. / Walmart AMP Midland, Ray Wylie Hubbard
July 28 Dallas, Texas / Dos Equis Pavilion Midland, Ray Wylie Hubbard
July 29 Austin, Texas / Germania Insurance Amphitheater Midland, Ray Wylie Hubbard
Aug. 4 Raleigh, N.C. / Coastal Credit Union Music Park Cody Jinks
Aug. 5 Bristow, Va. / Jiffy Lube Live Cody Jinks
Aug. 11 Indianapolis, Ind. / Ruoff Music Center Cody Jinks
Aug. 12 Chicago, Ill. / Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre Cody Jinks
Aug. 13* Des Moines, Iowa / Iowa State Fairgrounds Iowa State Fair
Aug. 17 Orange Beach, Ala. / The Wharf Amphitheater Lainey Wilson, Jackson Dean
Aug. 18 Orange Beach, Ala. / The Wharf Amphitheater Lainey Wilson, Jackson Dean
Aug. 19 Orange Beach, Ala. / The Wharf Amphitheater Lainey Wilson, Jackson Dean
Aug. 24 Sarasota Springs, N.Y. / Saratoga Performing Arts Center Lainey Wilson, The Red Clay Strays
Aug. 25 Holmdel, N.J. / PNC Bank Arts Center Whiskey Myers
Aug. 26 Philadelphia, Pa. / Freedom Mortgage Pavilion Whiskey Myers
Sept. 8 Portland, Ore. / RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater Jelly Roll, Hailey Whitters
Sept. 9 George, Wash. / Gorge Amphitheatre Jelly Roll, Hailey Whitters
Sept. 10 George, Wash. / Gorge Amphitheatre Jelly Roll, Hailey Whitters
Sept. 15 Albuquerque, N.M. / Isleta Amphitheater Paul Cauthen, Hailey Whitters
Sept. 16 Phoenix, Ariz. / Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre Jelly Roll, Paul Cauthen
Sept. 21 Atlanta, Ga. / Ameris Bank Amphitheatre Whiskey Myers
Sept. 22 Atlanta, Ga. / Ameris Bank Amphitheatre Whiskey Myers
Sept. 23 Charlotte, N.C. / PNC Music Pavilion Whiskey Myers
Sept. 24 Charlotte, N.C. / PNC Music Pavilion Whiskey Myers
Sept. 29 West Palm Beach, Fla. / iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre Whiskey Myers
Sept. 30 Tampa, Fla. / MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre Whiskey Myers
Oct. 7* Bristol, Tenn. / Bristol Motor Speedway Country Thunder Bristol
Oct. 15* Sacramento, Calif. / Discovery Park GoldenSky Festival
