On a Friday afternoon in mid-November, a nationwide halt to air travel stopped college football teams where they stood, some already seated on their planes and others still waiting at the gate. It was the kind of sudden pause that reminds a busy system how much depends on a single decision made far away from the fields where the games will be played. By evening the order was lifted, yet the ripple of delayed flights, exhausted crews, and rearranged schedules had already reached the athletes, coaches, and conferences who must now decide how to honor a Saturday that was never fully within their
FAA lifts nationwide ground stop Friday night, but college football teams scramble to reach Saturday games
The plane never left.
Mark
Why does a ground stop that lasted only a few hours still matter so much for these teams?
Mimi
Because the whole routine runs on Friday timing. Teams usually walk through at their facility, then go straight to the airport. Once Texas was boarded and Tennessee was due out at 4 p.m., losing that window pushed everything toward game day.
Luke
Worth noting the stop's lifting at 8:33 p.m. ET is attributed to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. The report is a live blog, so details were shifting.
Mark
Utah seems to be the clearest hard case.
Mimi
Yes. The charter crew ran out of hours, so the Utes fly Saturday morning and the Big 12 moved the game to 10:30 p.m. ET.
Luke
Right, that one is stated plainly. The list of schools seeking alternatives is different. It rests on multiple unnamed sources.
Mark
And Ole Miss and Oklahoma?
Mimi
They were negotiating a kickoff change from 3:30 p.m. ET. Ole Miss stayed in Oxford and will travel Saturday.
Luke
Negotiating isn't deciding. The source says a decision was coming but doesn't give one. Arizona State's early flight is also conditional, with a "could" attached.
Mark
So what's actually settled?
Mimi
Utah's new plan, USC being in the air, and the conferences saying they're monitoring. The rest was fluid.
Luke
And the source doesn't say how the late-arriving teams will fare on the field.
The Pulse
- A nationwide FAA ground stop froze flights in the afternoon, with Texas already boarded in Austin and Tennessee's team held at Knoxville's airport.
- Utah's late-night flight to Tucson collapsed when the charter crew ran out of legal hours, forcing a Saturday-morning departure.
- The Big 12 moved Utah's game against Arizona to 10:30 p.m. ET, while the SEC weighed its response to a shaky Saturday schedule.
- Ole Miss and Oklahoma are negotiating whether to shift their 3:30 p.m. kickoff, with the final call still hanging open.
- As the ground stop lifted at 8:33 p.m. ET, teams raced back to airports, and the question now is whether late arrivals can still play on time.
On a Friday afternoon in mid-November, a nationwide halt to air travel stopped college football teams where they stood, some already seated on their planes and others still waiting at the gate. It was the kind of sudden pause that reminds a busy system how much depends on a single decision made far away from the fields where the games will be played. By evening the order was lifted, yet the ripple of delayed flights, exhausted crews, and rearranged schedules had already reached the athletes, coaches, and conferences who must now decide how to honor a Saturday that was never fully within their control.
Texas had already boarded its plane in Austin, bound for Baton Rouge and a Saturday game against LSU, when the FAA issued a nationwide ground stop on Friday afternoon. The plane never left. It was one of many college football travel plans frozen in place at the start of a busy travel weekend.
Tennessee sat at Knoxville's airport, unable to get airborne. Utah was held in Salt Lake City ahead of its Saturday night game against Arizona. Some teams waited on their chartered planes for two hours; others sat in terminals awaiting word from the FAA.
When Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced at 8:33 p.m. ET that the stop was lifted, relief came, though the restart was slow. Several teams, including Washington, Texas, Tennessee and Oregon State, were back at the airport within the hour, hoping to still reach their destinations at a reasonable hour.
For others, the night did not recover. Utah's charter crew ran out of hours, so the Utes will fly Saturday morning and the Big 12 moved their game to 10:30 p.m. ET. Ole Miss and Oklahoma are still negotiating a possible kickoff change, and the SEC and Big 12 are watching closely. Arizona State may fly Saturday morning to Orlando for a same-day 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff.
Not every team was touched. USC was already in the air to Bloomington, and Alabama and Auburn may travel by bus. The decisions on kickoff times are still to come, and the coming hours will show whether Saturday's games can be played as planned.
Texas had already boarded its plane in Austin for the short flight to Baton Rouge, and a Saturday game against LSU, when the FAA issued a nationwide ground stop on Friday afternoon. The plane never left. It was one of several college football travel plans frozen in place by the second nationwide ground stop since 9/11, issued at the start of a busy travel weekend.
Tennessee's team was scheduled to leave McGee Tyson Airport in Knoxville at 4 p.m. ET, bound for College Station. The notice came first, and the Vols could not get airborne. No. 2 Utah was held in Salt Lake City ahead of its Saturday night game against Arizona. Some teams sat on their chartered planes for as long as two hours. Others waited in airport terminals for guidance from the FAA.
At 8:33 p.m. ET, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the ground stop was lifted and flights would resume. The restart was not simple, and teams were not going to move ahead of other passengers. Still, the earlier-than-feared lifting gave some programs a chance to reach their destinations at a reasonable hour. By 9:12 p.m. ET, Washington, Texas, Tennessee and Oregon State were headed back to the airport to board. Other grounded teams might decide late to fly if their charter companies had crews ready. Several Big 12 schools still planned to fly Saturday, though the situation remained fluid.
For others, the night did not recover. Utah had planned a late Friday flight to Tucson to play No. 22 Arizona, but the chartered airline told Utah officials its flight crew had run out of hours. The Utes will now fly Saturday morning, and the Big 12 moved the game to 10:30 p.m. ET Saturday.
Ole Miss and Oklahoma were negotiating a possible change to their 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday kickoff. The Rebels never left Oxford on Friday evening and will travel Saturday morning. A decision on the SEC game was still to come. According to multiple sources, schools looking for alternative travel included Texas, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Washington, Minnesota, Baylor, Tulane, Auburn, Arizona State and Oregon State, among others. Ole Miss, Tennessee and Baylor returned to their athletic buildings while officials worked out what arriving on game day would mean.
Arizona State could leave Sky Harbor Airport on Saturday morning for Orlando and its game against UCF if nothing changes. Both teams are set for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff, which would have the Sun Devils flying roughly four hours and then playing the same day.
The conferences responded. The Big 12 told OutKick it was evaluating potential changes to Saturday's schedule and would monitor the disruptions with its member schools. The SEC said it was monitoring the situation and assessing "appropriate responses" if needed.
Not everyone was affected. USC had already taken off for Bloomington to face Indiana and was due to land Friday evening. Alabama could take buses to Nashville for its game at Vanderbilt, and Auburn may be able to do the same for its trip to Starkville to play Mississippi State. Teams typically travel Friday afternoons, often after a walkthrough at their own facility, and many have security checkpoints set up there so players can step off the bus and onto the plane.
What to watch now: final kickoff-time decisions from the SEC and Big 12, and whether teams arriving Saturday can play as scheduled.
Notable Quotes
Due to the national FAA ground stop impacting team travel, the Big 12 Conference is evaluating potential changes to Saturday's football schedule.— Big 12 Conference statement to OutKick
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