Fans will finally take their seats for the Cotton Bowl Classic on Friday night at 6:30 p.m. in Arlington against an icy backdrop after a recent cold spell that brought snow, sleet, freezing temperatures, and school closures to North Texas.
In an attempt to move one step closer to a national championship, the University of Texas Longhorns play the Ohio State Buckeyes in the College Football Playoff semifinal at AT&T Stadium.
There has never really been a threat to cancel or reschedule, even though several individuals expressed worries about the weather and how it would impact the game, especially when forecasts got better. Additionally, if things did change, there would be a lot of scheduling implications to consider, particularly with television. The game might have clashed with the NFL playoffs if it had been postponed or canceled for another weekend date.
Ultimately, representatives from AT&T Stadium, the Cotton Bowl, and local emergency management provided reassurances that arrangements were in place to ensure the safest possible passage to and from the event.
At a news conference on Wednesday, Governor Greg Abbott even reaffirmed that confidence in response to a query from a reporter.
“I ve had conversations with multiple people about it, including in the briefing that we just had before coming into here, knowing that you would ask the question about Texas football,” Abbott stated. “There should be no hindrance to people being able to attend the game.”
Abbott warned that ice and snow on the roadways could cause issues, but advised drivers to exercise caution.
“If you re very cautious and slow and methodical in your driving, everything’s going to be just fine,” Abbott stated.
The reassurance was given only one day before Dallas officials said on Thursday that the city was seeing an increase in collisions due to the slick roads.
On Wednesday, both crews reached the region without any problems. However, as anticipated, there might have been more issues for fans trying to fly into the area on Thursday or Friday:On Thursday, the weather forced the cancellation of almost half of all flights into and out of Dallas Love Field and DFW International.
Increased security
In addition to weather-related issues, the game takes place right after the New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans, which claimed 15 lives, including the murderer, and injured many more. Days before the Sugar Bowl at the Superdome in New Orleans, the horrific act of violence occurred, forcing the event to be rescheduled with increased security.
The attack sparked talks between organizers and law officials on security for Friday’s game at AT&T Stadium, which is located more than 500 miles away in Arlington.
There will be more police officers present, mostly in and around the parking lots, but Arlington police said they have not yet been informed of any real security threats for the game.
Braving the cold
Temperatures in the region are expected to be around 35 degrees by the time Friday’s game begins.
Naturally, frigid weather is nothing new to AT&T Stadium. In the week preceding the Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl XLV, an ice storm caused snow and ice to fall from the stadium, injuring some spectators.
To avoid such issues, the Cowboys have subsequently placed an ice protection shaped like a ridge on the roof of the stadium. The guard’s functions include breaking up larger chunks of snow and ice and slowing or stopping their slide. In order to avoid ice and snow accumulation, the crew also developed a system that pumps warmer water onto the roof.
However, it remains to be seen what kinds of problems the weather might bring this time.
Will the event’s vibe be chilled by the cold? College football fans are quite fervent, and a sizable crowd will continue to attend the game regardless of the weather, particularly Longhorns supporters. This includes a large number of alumni from North Texas as well as Austin, who live nearby.
The matchup
Regarding the game, since the four-team era began in 2014, Texas has never advanced past this stage of the playoffs. Last year, it made its first playoff appearance, although it lost to Washington in the semifinals. The question now is whether Texas can find a way to advance to its first national championship game appearance since falling to Alabama in 2009, now that it is back to where it was in the original 12-team setup.
And the Longhorns will have their chance to win a championship for the first time since Vince Young’s famous “fourth-and-five” touchdown run secured the team’s victory over USC in the 2005 national championship if they can accomplish that.
