A nationwide ground stop issued by the Federal Aviation Administration on Friday forced significant changes to the college football schedule.
While several programs faced delayed kickoffs, the Southeastern Conference ultimately elected to move the matchup between No. 14 Ole Miss and Oklahoma to Sunday, according to Yahoo Sports.
The game was originally slated for Saturday afternoon but will now take place at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
According to the SEC, the decision was necessitated because Ole Miss was unable to depart Oxford on Friday night and could not reschedule travel until Saturday afternoon, as reported by Yahoo Sports.
The announcement prompted a harsh response from Oklahoma athletic director Roger Denny, who challenged the necessity of the postponement.
Denny stated that “unlike every other team traveling for competition tomorrow,” the Rebels were unable to find a viable solution to reach Norman on time, per the Yahoo Sports report.
In his official statement, the athletic director further revealed that SEC commissioner Greg Sankey threatened the university with a forfeit if they refused to comply with the new Sunday schedule.
Denny expressed frustration regarding the impact on fans who had already finalized travel and personal arrangements for a Saturday event.
He noted that “this decision isn’t fair to our athletes, our institution, or to Sooner Nation,” as detailed by the Yahoo Sports coverage.
While other programs managed to navigate the travel issues with only minor kickoff delays, the outlets reported that the Ole Miss-Oklahoma contest remains the only game pushed to Sunday.
The Sooners indicated they will provide more information regarding game logistics and fan appreciation measures on Saturday.