A nationwide FAA ground stop disrupted college football travel plans on Friday, forcing several Week 11 games to move to later kickoff times. Auburn’s trip to Mississippi State was among the most significant schedule changes: the game, originally set for noon ET, was rescheduled for 4:15 p.m. ET after the Tigers were unable to depart by air.
Auburn, which was 5-4 overall and 3-4 in the SEC, planned to travel by bus to Starkville, about a four-hour drive away. Mississippi State entered the matchup at 4-5 overall and 2-5 in conference play. The SEC said the kickoff adjustment was due to travel issues connected to Friday’s FAA ground stoppage.
The disruption affected teams and games across the country, with programs working to find ways to reach their destinations after flights were halted. Some teams spent time on airport tarmacs before returning to campus or arranging alternative transportation. Others faced delays as flights resumed and airports worked through the resulting backlog.
## College football kickoff times adjusted
Auburn-Mississippi State was not the only game affected. Several other matchups were moved to later times:
– Arizona State-UCF shifted from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET.
– Baylor-BYU moved from 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET.
– Tulane-Rice was rescheduled for 4:30 p.m. ET.
– FAU-Tulsa moved from 3:30 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. ET.
– Utah-Arizona was pushed back to 10:30 p.m. ET.
Kansas-West Virginia was not affected by the flight stoppage, but the game was moved two hours earlier, to 3:30 p.m. ET, to fill a spot in the schedule.
The situation also created uncertainty around Ole Miss’s trip to Oklahoma. The team did not fly as planned and said it was considering options involving both travel and the game. Moving the matchup to Sunday was discussed, but the listed kickoff time remained 4:15 p.m. ET at the time of the update.
Tennessee-Texas A&M remained scheduled for 3 p.m. Tennessee planned to fly Friday night. Texas, after sitting on the tarmac in Austin, returned to the airport to continue its trip to LSU. Alabama traveled to Vanderbilt by bus.
Officials were also part of the travel picture. All eight SEC officiating crews were reported to have arrived at their game sites, as had all Big Ten officials.
## What caused the nationwide ground stop?
The FAA issued its order at 3:54 p.m. ET, citing “extraordinary circumstances” and safety concerns. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said a communication problem had affected every air route traffic control center. CBS reported that an update to the private network connecting the system triggered a reboot and subsequent system crash.
Duffy later pointed to aging equipment, saying the system relied on copper lines dating to the 1980s. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was no indication of an attack and stated, “This isn’t another 9/11.”
The stoppage lasted about four hours. Although flights were allowed to resume, the interruption left airlines and airports dealing with a backlog, meaning teams still had to secure flights and reach their destinations. Most college programs travel by charter, but those flights do not receive priority when airports begin operating again.
Duffy encouraged football programs to coordinate with the FAA to arrange departure times and help ensure games could proceed. The SEC said it would continue monitoring the situation and make additional schedule changes if necessary.
## More teams faced travel uncertainty
Utah attempted to leave Friday night but was set to fly Saturday instead. Its game was delayed by three hours. Baylor-BYU also had to remain on Saturday because BYU cannot play on Sundays for religious reasons.
Washington faced a smaller disruption. The team had not yet boarded its plane when flights were grounded, so it deplaned, returned to campus and planned to head back to Boeing Field. Assistant athletic director Jeff Bechthold said the team was waiting for further information, like travelers elsewhere in the country.
Oregon State was also trying to work out how to reach Boise State, where ESPN’s *College GameDay* was set up. A nine-hour bus ride was not considered a realistic option.
The FAA’s decision to lift the ground stop cleared only the first obstacle. With more than 20 programs managing travel complications, teams still needed to get into the air, reach their destinations and prepare for games whose kickoff times had shifted.
