Late Night With Roy: How to watch and what to expect

It may be a little earlier than we are all used to, but it’s time for our first look of the 2019-2020 Tar Heels. The annual Late Night With Roy kicks off the new season tonight at the Smith Center. Consider this your guide on what to look for, whether you plan to be at the event or want to watch from home.

I can’t go, how can I watch?

Here’s the big thing: to have access to LNWR, you’ll need access to the ACC Network. In previous years, the event had streamed on the ACC digital platform that ESPN provided, along with all sorts of olympic sports like soccer, field hockey, and so on. With the debut of the ACCN this year, the platform is now called the ACC Network Extra, and you can only access it if your cable/streaming provider has the ACC Network.

To find out if yours does, check here. Get comfortable with where the ACC Network is on your provider as well, as several basketball games, including the first of the season, will be exclusively on this network.

What are the important times?

Doors open at the Smith Center at 6:30 PM, and the event is slated to start at 8 PM.

Who’s hosting this year?

A couple of Tar Heels will take their turn in the Stuart Scott emcee role: US Women’s World Cup winner and soccer team alum Ashlyn Harris as well as CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin.

Anything cool for those that are going?

According to the release, Utz will be giving out free chips and clips to 5,000 people, there will be LED batons as well as roll up banners given to the first 10,000 people, and some will have a chance to win $100 in Dunkin’ Donuts gift cards. In New England you’d expect those competitions to be a blood sport.

Who else is going to be there?

LNWR is always a big recruiting weekend, and this year is no different. Jake went over who all will be there tonight and at tomorrow’s football game, so check it out if you haven’t already. Considering the 2020 class is already shaping up to be one of Roy’s best ever, it’ll be a big night.

What are the actual events? (Updated 6:30 PM)

Thanks to RL Bynum on Twitter for sending out what to expect:

Notable here is the first chance for most people to meet the new UNC Women’s Basketball coach Courtney Banghart. It’ll be a reminder for many that a different person will be permanently sitting in the head coach’s chair for the first time since 1986. The rest here is your standard LNWR fare: intros, dance skits, some skills competitions, and then the actual scrimmage which will be your first chance to see the newcomers in actual game action. Sort of.

Who are these new guys again?

You can be forgiven if after a few months you’ve not been able to keep track of the new players on the roster. So, as a refresher, here are the new guys to look for, and here are their jersey numbers they’ll wear on the court:

• #0-Anthony Harris
• #2-Cole Anthony
• #5-Armando Bacot
• #13-Jeremiah Francis
• #25-Caleb Ellis
• #32-Justin Pierce
• #55-Christian Keeling

How much should we read into the scrimmage?

None, but you will anyway.

Happy New Year, folks!