First Responder Bowl cancelled due to lightning in the first quarter

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It was an overcast, cloudy day at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas. The game at hand was the Proserv F1rst Responder Bowl between the Boston College Eagles and the Boise State Broncos. This was just the second meeting all-time between the two schools. The first was in 2005 at the MPC Computers Bowl won by BC 27-21.

The Eagles finished the year 7-5 after a hot start to the season and the Broncos came into this game 10-3 and fell just short in the MW Championship game to Fresno St. Both teams were looking to finish the seasons strong with a win in this game.

With a brisk wind, Boise St got the ball first and took over on their own 25 after a touchback. The Broncos were forced to punt and BC took over at their own 25. From there, QB Anthony Brown proceeded to move the Eagles via the run and pass. Then AJ Dillon took the handoff and ran 19 yards for the score with 9:41 left in the first quarter. Just like that, it was 7-0 BC. The drive was successful because the offensive line was able to control the Broncos and keep them off balance.

After the Broncos were once again forced to punt BC took over and was forced to punt themselves. The Broncos took over at their own 14, but the game was stopped due to lightning. Up until this point, Bosie St was having a hard time moving the ball. The speed of the BC defense was causing them problems even in the open field. BC’s offense was able to move the ball to a point and had 93 total yards to Boise’s 33 at the stoppage.

After about 90 minutes or so of waiting, the officials huddled up to decide the fate of this game. They made the collective decision that for the safety of fans and all in the stadium the game should be canceled. For those folks in the building that traveled, like me, it was time to pack it up and move out. I must say that even though I was not looking forward to the four-hour drive from Dallas back to Houston, the decision was the right one. Weather forecasts had already foretold the deadly storm that was headed to the state of Texas. I must say if I had any doubts about the cancellation, the drive back home assured me they were correct.

After the game, there was actually a press conference. Both coaches talked about how they understood why the decision was made. How the safety of the players and the fans was the most important thing to consider. They talked about how if the decision was left up to the players, they would have gone back out and played the game. After all, it was the last game for the seniors on both sides and they really wanted to play one more time.

As I was leaving the Cotton Bowl I could hear many unhappy and angry fans. Some were saying they thought football was supposed to be played in the rain. Some were already wondering about a refund and others were demanding their money back. The good news for those folks is that they will, in fact, get a refund back.