ATHENS - Georgia's season opener at Clemson will indeed be in prime time on national television - and on Saturday, as originally planned.

The much-anticipated game will kick off at 8 p.m. and be broadcast on ABC, the network announced on Tuesday morning.

The UGA sports information office reports that this will mark Georgia's 73rd appearance on ABC, and the Bulldogs own a 44-26-2 record.

Interestingly, it appears that ABC/ESPN elected for the Georgia-Clemson game in prime time over Alabama's game against Virginia Tech. That game, which takes place at the Georgia Dome, will kick off at 5:30 p.m. and be on ESPN.

Georgia and Clemson each have a good chance to be ranked in the preseason top 10, and each have all-American candidates at quarterback who returned for their senior years: Aaron Murray and Tajh Boyd.

The two schools, which are a little more than an hour's drive apart, have not met since the 2003 season, when Georgia won 30-0. The Bulldogs will carry a five-game win streak in the rivalry, with Clemon's most recent win coming in 1990, in Death Valley.