The final game of Week 1 of the college football season, SMU at Florida State, kicked off Monday night after a nearly two hour delay due to a power outage at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee.
Originally scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. ET, the game finally kicked off at 9:15 p.m. ET—under highly unusual circumstances.
When the game kicked off, not all stadium lights were operational. Referees were keeping the official game clock on the field, so ESPN’s clock on the broadcast was unofficial; the network synced it with officials during each commercial break to keep it as accurate as possible. Teams did not have access to coach-to-player helmet communication systems or iPads. Instant replay was not available. And the game did not use a PA announcer, as there was no electricity in the press box.
“This is a bare-bones production here,” ESPN pre-game host Taylor Tannenbaum said just before kickoff. Tannenbaum and analysts Jimbo Fisher, Eric Mac Lain, and Eddie Royal were tasked with keeping viewers engaged throughout the delay. Fisher called the decision to play amid the limitations “unbelievable” and Royal said he “would move the game.” But Mac Lain said the teams should “do whatever you can to get this game done.”
