With kickoff still set for Friday night, Longhorns and Buckeyes fans face challenges as canceled flights and hazardous roads complicate travel plans. NBC 5’s Allie Spillyards has the story.
The Cotton Bowl Classic remains scheduled as planned. Game officials said this week that while they remain in close contact with local authorities and have a contingency plan in place, plans are in place to assure a safe environment for those in and around AT&T Stadium.
“The unknown’s kind of hard. We don’t know if we’re getting snow, ice, how much, in preparation for snow we’re looking at having a couple of snowplows and a motor grader to help with that,” said Field Operations Supervisor DJ Ryals.
Ryals said city crews first brined highways, including I-20, I-30, State Highway 360 and U.S. 287, before moving to the area around AT&T Stadium where the University of Texas will take on Ohio State Friday night.
“We’re pretty much treating it as what we usually do, business as usual, just trying to keep everyone safe to get here to the game Friday in and out,” he said.
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It’s not the first time Mother Nature threatened a sporting event that put North Texas on a national stage. In 2011, ice and snow wreaked havoc on North Texas roads as Arlington prepared to host the Super Bowl. Ahead of the game, six people were injured when melting ice and snow fell from the roof of AT&T Stadium.
It’s something stadium officials say they’ve worked to prevent from happening again.
Tuesday, they told NBC5 that after the Super Bowl, a system to pump warm water onto the roof was added to prevent snow and ice from building up and a guard was installed to block it from sliding.
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More than a decade later, Cotton Bowl officials are hoping weather will play less of an impact. They issued a statement late Tuesday:
“We continue to monitor weather reports, and over the last 24 hours, the forecast for later this week has improved according to the National Weather Service. We have been meeting routinely with city officials, the Director of Transportation for North Texas and the College Football Playoff. Should the forecast shift, we are prepared for all the contingencies.
North Texas highways are already being brined and plans are in place to assure a safe environment for everyone in and around AT&T Stadium on game day.
Fans started arriving in Arlington Wednesday after adjusting travel plans due to canceled flights and the potential of hazardous roads.
"They canceled tomorrow’s flight and put us on a 6 a.m. flight this morning. We decided to take a 7:30 flight tonight and they canceled that and we hurried to the airport and here we are," said Judy Hale who traveled in from Washington, D.C. to watch the Buckeyes.
Jane Lane, Elizabeth Ferguson, and Martha Deen altered their plans, booking a last-minute hotel in Arlington to stay near the stadium. The women are among the 767 Kilgore College Rangerette alumni scheduled to perform during the pregame show. It's a dance they now fear could be compromised by Mother Nature.
"I feel bad for the people who’ve put so much time and effort into and so many of the people won’t be able to make it. So i’m really sorry for that because this was a huge undertaking for the people at Kilgore College to get us all together," said Ferguson.
While game officials have said they’re prepared for contingencies, the game is scheduled to go on. And Arlington officals say they’re prepared.
The teams arrive tomorrow, as planned, and the 2025 CFP Semifinal at the 89th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic will kick off on Friday evening as scheduled.”
