| Date | Opponent | Ranking | Location | Result | Attendence | Time | Length | Event | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9/5/1981 | Richmond * | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | W, 27 - 21 | 40,400 | 7 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 9/12/1981 | at Wake Forest | Groves Stadium - Winston-Salem, NC | W, 28 - 23 | 29,000 | 7 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 9/19/1981 | East Carolina * | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | W, 31 - 10 | 52,200 | 7 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 9/26/1981 | Maryland | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | L, 9 - 34 | 47,500 | 7 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 10/3/1981 | Virginia | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | W, 30 - 24 | 42,200 | 1 PM | 60 min. | Homecoming | ||
| 10/17/1981 | North Carolina (AP: 4, Coaches': 4) | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | L, 10 - 21 | 56,200 | 1 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 10/24/1981 | at Clemson (AP:4, Coaches': 5) | Memorial Stadium - Clemson, SC | L, 7 - 17 | 62,727 | 1 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 10/31/1981 | at South Carolina * | Williams-Brice Stadium - Columbia, SC | L, 12 - 20 | 56,517 | 12:35 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 11/7/1981 | Penn State (AP: 6, Coaches': 6) * | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | L, 15 - 22 | 48,800 | 1 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 11/14/1981 | at Duke | Wallace Wade Stadium - Durham, NC | L, 7 - 17 | 26,750 | 12:30 PM | 60 min. | |||
| 11/21/1981 | Miami (FL) (AP: 11) * | Carter-Finley Stadium - Raleigh, NC | L, 6 - 14 | 36,500 | 1 PM | 60 min. |
* Non-conference games
Last updated: 11/8/2023