Washington’s Flight Delay Puts Michigan State Game in Doubt

On November 13, the status of Saturday’s Michigan State-Washington football game remained uncertain after the FAA ordered a nationwide ground stop for outgoing flights. Washington had not left Seattle before the order took effect, shortly before 4 p.m. Eastern time.

A flight scheduled to depart King County International Airport at 4:15 p.m. Eastern was expected to arrive at Lansing’s Capital Region International Airport around 8:30 p.m. The game is set for a 4:15 p.m. kickoff on Saturday, November 14. Traveling by bus is not a practical option for the Huskies, and the duration of the flight restriction was unclear.

At least 10 teams from Power Four conferences were reported to be stuck, including Big Ten teams Minnesota and Purdue. Other college football teams had reached their destinations before the ground stop began, leaving schools facing different travel situations.

A postponement could create scheduling complications. Moving games to Sunday might not help if flights remain grounded, and television schedules would be constrained by NFL broadcasts on FOX and CBS. Rescheduling games for the week after the regular season would conflict with conference championship games.

The ground stop could be lifted before the game, but no alternative arrangement for Michigan State and Washington had been identified.