Texas Longhorns Team Flight Grounded in Austin Amid Nationwide FAA Stoppage

The Texas Longhorns are being impacted by the FAA's nationwide ground stoppage before facing the LSU Tigers.

Detailed view of a Texas Longhorns helmet during the CFP National playoff first round at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The Texas Longhorns football team is being impacted by the FAA's nationwide ground stoppage on Friday ahead of this weekend's matchup against the LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge.

The Texas team flight remains grounded in Austin and has yet to take off, per multiple reports. This comes after the FAA announced that no flights are to take off "due to a communication issue affecting air traffic control," according to ABC News. Planes already in the air can land, but new flights can't take off until the ground stoppage is lifted.

Texas football posted a video of the team boarding the plane on Friday afternoon, but their American Airlines charter flight didn't take off.

Texas Heading Back to DKR After Deplaning

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian during the game against the Oklahoma Sooners at the Cotton Bowl. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

According to Eric Henry of Horns247, the Longhorns have deplaned and are heading back to DKR.

The next steps for the team remain unclear. No. 6 Texas and No. 21 LSU are scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. CT kickoff on Saturday night in Baton Rouge at Tiger Stadium.

Here's a look at the Longhorns boarding their plane before the FAA's announcement changed the team's plans.

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How Far is the Drive From Austin to Baton Rouge?

It remains unclear at this time when the FAA will lift its nationwide ground stop. Until that happens, the logical next step is figuring out how the Longhorns will get to Baton Rouge.

It's obviously not ideal for the Longhorns to drive to Louisiana, but it's shorter trip than many of the other college football team across the country are having to take this weekend.

The drive from DKR to Tiger Stadium is around 6.5 to 7 hours, though this ETA could be shorter if the Longhorns have a police escort. However, traffic in the Houston area could impact how quickly the team makes its way east on I-10.

But this is all just speculation in the event that taking a bus becomes the next best option. For now, there's been no announcement from the team about plans to drive to Louisiana.

It's worth noting that the Alabama Crimson Tide football team is making the approximately four-hour bus ride to Nashville for their matchup against Vanderbilt, per multiple reports.

Perhaps this is an early sign that the Longhorns will do the same, but only time will tell.

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