Taylor McGregor Credit: ESPN
By Megan Armstrong on

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ESPN welcomed viewers into Doak Campbell Stadium for Florida State’s matchup with No. 19 SMU at 7:29 p.m. EST on Monday night.

“And right at that moment, that’s when everything went down,” ESPN play-by-play announcer Dave Pasch explained. “Lights went off on floors eight and nine, including our floor here, along with all the lights in the stadium.”

With sunlight waning, officials had no choice but delay the game due to a power surge.

“The stadium lights are not operating because of a power surge,” Pasch said, noting the issue was not weather-related. “It’s probably about 20 minutes away from being completely dark here at Doak Campbell Stadium, so the game is delayed.”

As darkness slowly took over, ESPN sideline reporter Taylor McGregor‘s star shined. She reported on the ground deftly and thoroughly throughout the peculiar, prolonged delay.

Roughly 30 minutes into the delay, power was restored in parts of the stadium, but “not enough to actually play this game,” Pasch relayed. He threw it back down to McGregor, who had yet another pertinent update.

“I just spoke to ACC commissioner Jim Phillips, and he told me at 8:20 [p.m.] is when they expect an update,” McGregor said, adding, “They know where the issue is. Dave and Dusty [Dvoracek], it is on your side of the press box. So, the lights went on behind me, but they kind of expected those lights to be able to turn on.”

“The real issue will be on the other side of the stadium,” McGregor continued. “That’s what they’re still trying to figure out. Can they get those lights on? Because they cannot play until those lights come on.”

McGregor’s reporting earned rave reviews on X (formerly Twitter), as seen below.

ACC Huddle host Taylor Tannebaum, who also guided the broadcast masterfully through the delay, joked that the ESPN broadcast had morphed into “a fun game of where in the world is Taylor McGregor.” Tannebaum threw it back to McGregor, who reported that “they’re basically throwing a Hail Mary to try to get the power back on,” characterized as “the last option.”

An hour into the delay, Pasch and Dvoracek confirmed that they’d never experienced anything like this before. ESPN cameras panned to the in-stadium video board, which read: “GAME DELAYED. Technical staff are addressing a power disruption to the west side tower due to an electrical short in the main transformer. Electricians are working to restore the power service. The game remains suspended.”

Ultimately, McGregor reported that the stadium had “enough lights” for Florida State and SMU to play the game.

The show must go on, but not without several asterisks. The game’s clock will be kept on the field. Coaches and players won’t be able to communicate. No iPads, no PA announcer, and no scoreboard. As of this writing, the game is yet to kickoff.

Somehow, Michigan’s controversial win over Western Michigan wasn’t the most bizarre Hail Mary of the college football weekend.

About Megan Armstrong

Since first getting published as a student by the Kansas City Star in 2013, Megan Armstrong has gone wherever curiosity and stories have taken her, specializing in sports, media, music, and culture coverage. She also has an extensive background in interviewing and profiling public figures. Her work has appeared in Billboard, Boardroom, Bleacher Report, Esquire, GQ, GRAMMY.com, NYLON, Newsweek, Teen Vogue, The Hollywood Reporter, UPROXX, and elsewhere.

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