College football’s Saturday slate is suddenly dealing with a travel mess after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide ground stop Friday evening.
The good news, at least for now, is that the disruption is not believed to be tied to any attack. The bad news is that there’s no clear end point yet, and thousands of flights have already been delayed or canceled across the country. That kind of shutdown can ripple quickly through a college football weekend, especially with plenty of teams still trying to get to their road destinations.
It’s only the second nationwide ground stop since 9/11, and the timing could not be worse for programs trying to make their way to games on Saturday.
The Southeastern Conference has already acknowledged the situation and said it is watching closely.
“The Southeastern Conference is aware of the FAA’s nationwide ground stop and the potential impact on team travel for this weekend’s competition,” the statement reads. “We are in close communication with our member institutions to assess potential disruptions and coordinate appropriate responses. The safety and well-being of student-athletes, coaches, and team personnel remain our highest priority.
“We will continue to monitor developments and work with our institutions to determine whether any adjustments to schedule competitions become necessary.”
Some teams are already in place. Auburn is preparing to bus to Starkville for its game against Mississippi State, Florida is already in Lexington for Kentucky, and Missouri is already in Athens for Georgia.
Conference officials are also talking with media partners about shifting kickoff times for affected games, including the possibility of moving games into different time slots. According to Ross Dellenger, several teams have already headed back to campus after airport staff told administrators the grounding could last eight more hours.
Among the teams still grounded and waiting to travel are Utah, Texas, Tennessee and Ole Miss.
For now, the situation remains fluid, and programs around the country are watching closely to see whether delays turn into schedule changes or postponements.
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