NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — The Southeastern Conference announced late Friday that No. 19 Mississippi's game at Oklahoma would be delayed a full day to Sunday in the aftermath of the FAA's deicision to ground all flights.
The SEC said the Ole Miss football team was unable to leave Oxford on Friday night.
“After the stoppage was lifted, a late-night departure could not be accommodated by the charter company with which Ole Miss was contracted,” the SEC said. The Rebels (6-3) will now leave for Oklahoma (5-4) on Saturday afternoon. The game originally scheduled for 4:15 p.m. Eastern will now kick off at 1 p.m. Eastern on Sunday.
Oklahoma athletic director Roger Denny ripped the decision, which he said was made by SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey over the Sooners’ “strong objection.” He said the SEC threatened Oklahoma with a forfeit if it did not agree to Sunday’s move.
“We were told that Ole Miss explored every avenue to travel to Norman and play on Saturday as planned,” Denny posted on X. “But unlike every other team traveling for competition tomorrow, they were unable to find a solution.”
He said the change would cause “unnecessary disruption and hardship” for fans.
“I understand that difficult decisions sometimes must be made under extraordinary circumstances,” Denny wrote. “Put simply, this decision isn’t fair to our athletes, our institution or to Sooner nation. But we’ve been given no other choice. ... we remain steadfast in our belief that the wrong outcome was reached this evening.”
