A nationwide ground stop issued by the Federal Aviation Administration disrupted travel plans for numerous college football teams on Friday.
The “nearly four-hour” aviation halt resulted in thousands of flight cancellations, according to reports.
ESPN and ABC have confirmed they are prepared to broadcast all scheduled games despite the logistical challenges, “ESPN/ABC is prepared to produce all the college football games on their schedule tomorrow”, Richard Deitsch reported.
Broadcaster Kirk Herbstreit remains in Boise for College GameDay, leaving his assignment for the Texas-LSU game in question, per Deitsch.
Pete Thamel reported that at least 13 programs, including Texas, Tennessee, and Ole Miss, were left in “flight limbo” as the ground stop took effect.
While some teams have secured new travel arrangements, others are still managing their logistics.
Texas A&M announced that their matchup against Tennessee is “expected to move forward as originally scheduled”, according to the university.
Meanwhile, Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports noted that Texas plans to travel to Baton Rouge on Saturday, while Ole Miss continues to evaluate options to reach Oklahoma, “will continue to work through options”, the outlet reported.
Several other programs, including Kansas State and Baylor, are working with tentative travel plans for Saturday morning, according to Dellenger.
The disruption has already forced at least one adjustment to the schedule, as the Arizona State-UCF game was pushed back by two hours to a 5:30 p.m. kickoff time, “will be delayed to 5:30 p.m. ET”, per Yahoo Sports.
As the situation remains fluid, fans are encouraged to monitor announcements regarding potential further changes to the weekend slate.
The broader impact on the sports world remains significant as teams navigate the aftermath of the “chaotic aftermath” of the nationwide flight stoppage.