Power Outage Stalls Season Opener
The Labor Day night showdown between Florida State and SMU, originally slated for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, was abruptly halted when a power outage plunged the venue into darkness just before the opening whistle.
Around 7:40 p.m. ET, stadium lights flickered briefly before going out entirely, and officials attempted to reset a transformer; however, the unit blew, preventing an immediate restoration of electricity and leaving the stadium without power.
SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee voiced his frustration, noting that the teams had already endured a lengthy wait and that the delay was unnecessary given the circumstances.
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips announced that an update regarding the revised kickoff time would be released at 8:20 p.m. ET, as staff continued to work on restoring service.
Once power is finally restored, the game will include a mandatory 10‑minute warm‑up period before play can resume, while the earlier storm warning for Tallahassee, which predicted a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms, proved unrelated to the electrical failure.