Arch Manning and the Longhorns’ trip to Baton Rouge turned into a complete travel nightmare Friday. What should have been a routine flight ahead of Saturday’s Texas-LSU showdown ended with the team stranded back on campus after a nationwide ground stop wrecked their plans. Now, with kickoff approaching, Texas could be facing a brutal six-hour bus ride just to reach Tiger Stadium.

It wasn’t just the players dealing with the mess. ESPN’s broadcast crew was caught up in the same travel disruption, putting the network’s plans for Saturday night’s game in jeopardy. Sideline reporter Holly Rowe was among those affected. She gave followers a glimpse of the alternative on X, sharing a map of the route between the two cities.

“Not too bad if worse comes to worst,” she wrote.

The comment offered a little humor amid a travel situation that was anything but convenient. With no immediate indication of when flights would resume, the possibility of taking the highway became increasingly real. Austin and Baton Rouge are separated by 432 miles, with the drive along Interstate 10 estimated at six hours and 29 minutes.

Texas was still waiting to see whether air travel would resume, but a lengthy bus journey was clearly on the table if the delay continued.

The trouble started when the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide ground stop Friday afternoon. The order came at 3:54 p.m. ET after communication problems disrupted operations at air traffic control centers across the country. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the issue on social media as the FAA worked to investigate.

Texas had already made it to the airport stage of its trip. The No. 6 Longhorns had boarded their charter flight in Austin ahead of the roughly 90-minute journey to Baton Rouge. Then, the ground stop changed everything as players and staff were forced off the plane.

On3’s Pete Nakos later provided an update on the Longhorns’ situation, reporting that the team had returned to campus and was scheduled to be in Baton Rouge on Saturday night. That left the program with a decision to make as the hours ticked away.

The FAA offered little explanation beyond citing safety concerns and “extraordinary circumstances.” Departing planes had to remain on the ground until further notice. International flights coming into the country weren’t getting a free pass either. Officials said those arrivals would be dealt with individually.

This wasn’t some isolated airport problem. The FAA had stopped flights across the country, something it had done only once before since 9/11, in January 2023.

Texas had company in the travel mess. ESPN’s crew wasn’t spared either. Holly Rowe was due on the sideline, with Kirk Herbstreit also assigned to the ABC broadcast. Their travel problems left the network looking at possible backup plans.

For Arch Manning and the Longhorns, though, getting to Baton Rouge was about more than a long ride. Texas and LSU are scheduled to meet at 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC, and neither team has much room for distractions with the CFP picture tightening. The Longhorns enter at 7-2, while the Tigers sit at 6-3, with both still looking for a way into the playoff conversation.

Saturday also marks the Longhorns’ first appearance at LSU’s Tiger Stadium since 1953. A 2020 trip was wiped out by COVID, so this return has been a long time coming.

First, though, Arch Manning and the Longhorns need to make it to Baton Rouge. The flight is already off the table. If things don’t change, they’ll be spending hours on a bus instead of preparing for LSU.