A nationwide FAA ground stop upended college football travel schedules and forced kickoff changes for nine games across the country.
A nationwide FAA ground stop caused by communication issues affecting multiple Air Route Traffic Control Centers forced the Big 12 Conference and other leagues to adjust kickoff times for Saturday football games after team flights were grounded.
FAA Ground Stop Delays Utah Travel for Arizona Matchup
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered the ground stop Friday afternoon following communication issues, temporarily halting departures nationwide as technicians investigated, according to reports.
The disruption left No. 2 Utah unable to depart for Tucson for its matchup against the Arizona Wildcats, returning players to the Eccles Football Center after the flight was called off.
The game was pushed back to 10:30 p.m. Eastern time because the Utes were unable to leave Friday night and were not scheduled to depart until 10:50 a.m. Saturday. The Utes remain undefeated at 9-0, with a 6-0 record in Big 12 play, and remain in contention for the Big 12 championship and College Football Playoff.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said technicians were investigating the outage, while Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated there was no evidence of a cyberattack. The ground stop was lifted shortly before 7 p.m. Friday as the airspace slowly reopened. Other nationally ranked programs affected by the travel disruptions included No. 6 Texas, No. 8 Tennessee, and No. 19 Ole Miss.
“Due to the national FAA ground stop impacting team travel, the Big 12 Conference is evaluating potential changes to Saturday’s football schedule. The Conference will continue to monitor the travel disruptions alongside its member institutions and provide updates for Saturday’s games,” officials from the Big 12 Conference said in a statement.
Rescheduled Matchups in Provo
Brigham Young University announced that its home game against Baylor at LaVell Edwards Stadium was rescheduled from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Mountain time on FOX. Baylor was among the teams caught in the ground stop while trying to fly to Provo. The No. 10 Cougars enter the contest at 7-2 overall and 4-2 in Big 12 play, looking to rebound from their loss to Utah.
The scheduling shifts extended beyond football at BYU, where women’s basketball and women’s volleyball start times were also moved.
The women’s basketball matchup against New Mexico was shifted to 1 p.m. at the Marriott Center for broadcast on ESPN+, and the women’s volleyball match against Texas Tech moved to 2 p.m. at the Smith Fieldhouse on ESPN+. The Utah men's basketball game against Washington, originally scheduled for Saturday, was moved to Sunday at noon.
The updated slate features Auburn at Mississippi State moving from noon to 4:15 p.m. Eastern, Tulane at Rice shifting from 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. Eastern, Kansas at West Virginia moving from 5:30 to 3:30 p.m. Eastern, Arizona State at UCF shifting from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Eastern, Baylor at BYU moving from 3:30 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern, FAU at Tulsa shifting from 3:30 to 7:15 p.m. Eastern, Washington at Michigan State moving from 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. Eastern, Utah at Arizona shifting from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Eastern, and Ole Miss at Oklahoma moving from Saturday 4:15 p.m. to Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Eastern.
The Ole Miss and Oklahoma matchup also carries potential consequence as the Rebels still have an outside chance of making it in, though they face an uphill battle to escape Norman with a win while missing several key absentees, including top rusher Kewan Lacy.