Utah, BYU kickoff times rescheduled after ground stop

For Tucson, the most immediate effect of Friday’s nationwide FAA ground stop is a much later start to Saturday night’s Utah at Arizona football game. The matchup at Arizona Stadium has been moved to 8:30 p.m., three hours after its originally scheduled kickoff. The change gives Utah additional time to reach Tucson after its planned flight was canceled, but it also alters the schedule for fans, stadium workers, campus personnel and anyone arranging transportation around the game.

Utah, ranked No. 2, is scheduled to face No. 23 Arizona in Tucson on Saturday. The Utes were still in Salt Lake City Friday night after the Federal Aviation Administration halted flights at airports across the country. The team eventually returned to the Eccles Football Center on the University of Utah campus, where players were seen leaving shortly after 6 p.m. A source told The Salt Lake Tribune that Utah planned to travel to Tucson on Saturday morning.

The ground stop was lifted Friday evening, but the disruption had already delayed hundreds of flights and affected college football teams around the country. Utah’s flight to Tucson was called off, leaving the team to wait in Salt Lake City while conference and school officials worked through possible changes to Saturday’s schedule. The late kickoff in Tucson is the result of that travel problem, rather than a change involving the teams’ on-field plans.

For Arizona fans, the revised 8:30 p.m. start means the game will take place later than expected and could affect plans for getting to and from the stadium. The available information does not indicate any change to the location. The game remains scheduled for Arizona’s home field in Tucson, and it will continue to be televised on FOX 13. No additional details about Arizona’s response were provided.

The flight disruption also affected the other major football game involving a Utah school. BYU said its home game against Baylor at LaVell Edwards Stadium would begin at 5 p.m., moved from 1:30 p.m. Baylor was unable to leave Waco because of the FAA order and said it would travel to Utah Saturday morning. That delay, like Utah’s travel problem, forced the Big 12 to adjust the timing of a scheduled game while trying to keep the weekend slate intact. The BYU game will also remain on FOX 13.

The Big 12 acknowledged the travel crisis in a statement, saying it was evaluating possible changes to Saturday’s football schedule because the national ground stop was affecting team travel. The conference said it would continue working with its member schools and monitoring the disruptions. During a Friday evening press conference, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy urged college football programs to coordinate directly with the FAA so teams could reach their destinations in time for their games.

Other Utah teams were also caught in the uncertainty. Utah State’s football team was grounded before its planned trip from Logan to San Diego State, and its next travel plans had not been determined. Weber State assistant athletic director Paul Grua said the Wildcats were unable to fly to Flagstaff for their scheduled 2 p.m. game against Northern Arizona. The ground stop also delayed teams including Tennessee, Texas, Ole Miss, Kansas State and Washington, showing that the impact reached well beyond Utah and the Big 12.

The disruptions extended beyond football. Utah’s men’s basketball game against Washington, originally set for Saturday, was moved to Sunday at noon. That change adds another adjustment for Utah fans after a day in which flights, team travel and game times were repeatedly reassessed. The Big 12’s statement reflected the broader challenge: schools had to balance the desire to play as scheduled with the practical problem of moving teams across the country after the FAA’s nationwide order.

For Tucson, attention now turns to whether Utah can complete its Saturday morning trip and arrive in time for the evening kickoff. The delayed start gives the Utes more time to travel from Salt Lake City, while Arizona’s home game remains on the calendar. Fans planning to attend should account for the 8:30 p.m. kickoff, and television viewers can still watch the matchup on FOX 13. The situation remained subject to updates as teams and conference officials continued responding to the travel disruption.