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Light issue at Bounce House causes delay in UCF season opener

IMG_0985by:Griffin McVeigh•08/31/23•

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UCF Knights
Photo by Mike Watters / USA TODAY Sports

For the first time, UCF has a Big 12 logo painted on their field. The Knights are entering their first season in the conference, with Kent State coming to the Bounce House. In what should be a fun night of celebration for fans in Orlando, there was a delay to the game early on.

Early in the game, UCF decided to have some fun with the fans. All of the stadium lights went off while people in the stands used the flashlights on their phones. Music played over the speaker while the phone lights went up and down.

Fireworks were even shot off, completing a good first edition of Lights Up, Lights Down. A fun game to play whenever having a night game, no doubt. It looks pretty cool too, as shown by the official UCF Twitter account.

Well, once the fun was done in the crowd, the lights never came back on. UCF installed some upgrades to the lighting system and there were some problems in their first game. This caused a slight delay and forced Kent State-UCF to take a short break.

“There’s a delay in the game because of the lights. #UCF upgraded the lighting system to be able to put on shows during the game,” Matt Murschel of the Orlando Sentinal said via Twitter. “Clearly, not all the bugs have been worked out.”

Thankfully, the problem was resolved in a quick fashion and the game is back underway. UCF is off to a great start as well, building up an early lead against Kent State. The fans most likely enjoy the lead more than Lights Up, Lights Down. It’s close, though.

More on UCF joining Big 12

UCF was at the forefront of the Power Six moment from the American Athletic Conference. But when the opportunity to jump to the Big 12 arose, it was too good to pass up. The program is going to be taking a positive step forward and hopes to be a real competitor in the conference.

Baylor is going to be the first Big 12 opponent to visit the Bounce House. The likes of Oklahoma State and West Virginia will be making the trip down to Orlando as well. Fans will get to experience the emotions of facing a slew of new opponents and could stack up a few wins.

Hopefully, the lighting system will be back in form by then. If TV networks decide to give UCF a night game, Lights Up, Lights Down is going to come back. And when they go down, they need to go back up.