Colorado State Football Holds Walkthrough on Airport Tarmac During Nationwide Ground Stop, Scene Goes Viral
On Friday, November 13, the Colorado State University football team was waiting at Northern Colorado Regional Airport (FNL) in Colorado when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued its nationwide ground stop. The Rams simply held their day-before-the-game walkthrough on the airport tarmac. A photo collage posted by the team's official X account, and footage shared on X by ESPN reporter Pete Thamel, spread quickly, and the scene went viral on social media.
According to The Coloradoan, the Rams had been scheduled to depart FNL a bit after 3 p.m. Mountain Time for the Pacific Northwest. After the ground stop was ordered, the team had to remain at the airport and held the walkthrough on the tarmac. The New York Post reported that the collage posted by the team's X account included shots of a center preparing to snap the ball and of head coach Jim Mora making the rounds at the airport.
The FAA lifted the nationwide ground stop shortly before 7 p.m. Mountain Time. The Rams boarded after a team meal and, according to The Coloradoan, landed in Lewiston, Idaho, at about 8:45 p.m. Pacific Time that night, flying there before continuing to Pullman, Washington, for the game. The team later posted on X that it had landed safely, along with a photo of Mora boarding the plane captioned "Wheels up to Pullman."
The Rams face the Washington State Cougars in Pullman on Saturday night, November 14, with kickoff at 8:30 p.m. Mountain Time (7:30 p.m. Pacific). According to the New York Post, the Rams are 3-6 and the Cougars 1-8, and the game is going ahead as scheduled, even as travel for college teams across the country was disrupted that night and some games were delayed or postponed. Colorado State's volleyball team was also affected the same day: it took off before the ground stop, was diverted to Las Vegas, and continued by bus to San Diego for its November 14 match at San Diego State.
Earlier in the week, Mora had spoken excitedly about the team finally flying out of FNL for the first time this season, instead of driving more than an hour to Denver International Airport. The time-saving trip ended up being remembered nationwide for a walkthrough held on a tarmac.
Source: The Coloradoan
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 科罗拉多州立大学橄榄球队主场Canvas Stadium资料图（FarGah1摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons；非事发现场图）
- 2026-11-13FAA Orders Nationwide Ground Stop: All U.S. Departures Held After Air Traffic Control Communications Failure, First Nationwide Halt Since 2023
- 2026-11-13Follow-Up: Nationwide Ground Stop Still in Effect; Nearly 1,700 U.S. Flights Canceled and Delays Top 10,000 as Airlines Issue Waivers
- 2026-11-13Follow-Up: Eurocontrol Suspends U.S.-Bound Departures From Its 42 Member States at the FAA's Request
- 2026-11-13[Video] Follow-Up: FAA Lifts Nationwide Ground Stop After More Than Four Hours; Nearly 6,000 Friday Flights Canceled, Weekend Schedules Still Disrupted
- 2026-11-13Follow-Up: Two Cabinet Secretaries Brief at the White House on the Nationwide Ground Stop: No Evidence of a Cyberattack, Congress Urged to Fund Air Traffic Control Modernization
- 2026-11-13Oscar Winner Daniel Kaluuya and Tyriq Withers Stranded at Eugene Airport: Their Interview During the Nationwide Ground Stop Goes Viral
- 2026-11-14Follow-Up: More Than 2,500 U.S. Flights Canceled Saturday as Airlines Recover From Nationwide Ground Stop
- 2026-11-14Follow-Up: Canada Offered the FAA Full Assistance During the Nationwide Ground Stop, Including Taking U.S.-Bound Flights; Newsom Offers Thanks
- 2026-11-14Colorado State Football Holds Walkthrough on Airport Tarmac During Nationwide Ground Stop, Scene Goes ViralThis story
- 2026-11-14Follow-Up: FAA Instrument-Flight Ground Stop on Nov. 13 Reached Ventura County's Camarillo and Oxnard Airports While Visual Flights Continued
- 2026-11-14[Video] Follow-Up: Transportation Secretary Duffy Holds Press Conference in Washington on Nationwide Ground Stop Response and Flight Recovery
- 2026-11-14Follow-Up: Duffy Says a Single Router Flooded the Air Traffic Network in the Nationwide Ground Stop; 17 of 22 Centers Affected, Over 5,000 Saturday Flights Canceled
- 2026-11-14Ole Miss at Oklahoma Football Game Moved to Sunday After FAA Ground Stop; Oklahoma AD Objects
