Lightning stopped the game, but not the Big Blue Nation
Only the weather could stop Kentucky from playing a complete game in the 2024 season opener at Kroger Field. The opening game was delayed two hours and ten minutes due to lightning around the scheduled 7:55 p.m. start time. Once the game finally kicked off at 10:05 p.m., Kentucky’s opponent, Southern Miss, did little to contain Brock Vandagriff’s QB1 debut or Bush Hamdan’s first game as the Wildcats’ new play-caller. Vandagriff and Hamdan shined in their first game together in Lexington, guiding Kentucky’s offense to 31 points in just over one half of football.
Vandagriff threw three touchdowns in his first career start, hitting Barion Brown for two first-half scores and then tight end Jordan Dingle for another early in the third quarter. The touchdown toss to Dingle was followed by more lightning in the area, sending fans into the concourse with uncertainty around the remaining 25 minutes of football. A few moments and one discouraging forecast later, the rest of the game was called off due to inclement weather, and the 31-0 score ruled final after only 35 minutes of play.
The decision was made at 12:25 a.m. Sunday morning: “By mutual agreement of the participating institutions as permitted by NCAA rules, tonight’s game between Kentucky and Southern Mississippi has been terminated and is considered a complete game with a final score of 31-0 in favor of Kentucky.”
Before news of the mutual agreement spread, several fans still lingered throughout Kroger Field, hoping more football would be played. Many were willing to see the delay through until sunrise, only to receive word that they had to go home.
For their enthusiasm and willingness to stay, the Big Blue Nation was the MVP of Kentucky’s win over Southern Miss, with Vandagriff, Hamdan, and Kentucky’s defense, among others, receiving votes.
Blue got in and stayed in
Several hours before anyone knew Kentucky-Southern Miss would get cut short, fans lined up outside Kroger Field, eager for their first glimpse at the new-look Wildcats. The lines grew longer and longer as the gates were held shut due to lightning nearby. When fans were finally allowed in, the game was delayed 20 minutes to give the players time to warm up.
But then another lightning bolt struck in the distance, delaying the game again. Then another. And another. Uncertainty grew as coaches from both sides met with officials to decide if the game would be played at all.
Meanwhile, the fans were rocking through it all, eagerly awaiting football time in the Bluegrass. They started a wave to pass the time. They danced in the rain to some of their favorite songs, classic UK hits like “Mony, Mony,” and several rounds of “Grove Street Party,” with Kroger Field’s new blue LED lights glowing above. Those are cool.
Several fans met Mark Pope, who was spotted giving out high-5s in the lower bowl during the delay. The basketball team was there too. Football alums like Will Levis, Wandale Robinson, Chris Rodriguez, and Josh Hines-Allen were other celebrity guests unbothered by Mother Nature. The fans were thrilled to see them home.
Outside the training facility, one lucky young fan played rock-paper-scissors with Deone Walker through a window while Barion Brown catnapped in the hallway:
The fans could’ve gone home. They didn’t. And many wanted to stay even longer, as long as it would take, to see more football.
Attendance was announced at 61,627.
Stoops: “I sincerely can’t even begin to thank the fans”
Traditionally, Kentucky has trouble filling Kroger Field for the first game of the season. But for the 2024 opener against Southern Miss, fans showed up and stayed through two hours of weather delay, only to see two-plus quarters of football. The man coaching his 12th season opener in Lexington noticed.
Mark Stoops was very appreciative of the fan support, saying afterward, “I sincerely can’t even begin to thank the fans for what they were like. To go out there two hours after we were supposed to and see them, going nuts and cheering us on and rooting us. That was truly amazing.”
[Stoops thanks fans for waiting through weather delays: “That was truly amazing”]
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