Eric Hyman said he never thought the first issue he would face as Texas A&M athletic director would be a hurricane.
At a press conference Wednesday, Hyman discussed deciding factors that went into the decision to move the A&M-Louisiana Tech football game to a later date. He said there were many ideas discussed between himself and Bruce Van De Velde, the Louisiana Tech athletic director.
We looked at a lot of different possibilities, a lot of different options, Hyman said. Unfortunately, Lousiana Tech and Texas A&M had a rough day on the same day.
Hyman said Van De Velde met with weather experts in Shreveport, the local military base and security personnel. They all said the game needed to be postponed.
Were all sensitive to the fans, to our student athletes, to our community, Hyman said. We based the decision on the facts that we knew at that time.
Hyman said the least desirable option for both teams was to play on Oct. 13. Hyman said many options were considered, from playing the game on Friday or Saturday to flying the Louisiana Tech team to Kyle Field, but nothing was feasible.
Although it was the least desirable option, Hyman said the decision offered a good opportunity for the Aggies.
One of the positives, the University of Florida is not going to see us on film, Hyman said.
For weather-related issues, SEC protocol states that at game time the decision to postpone the game falls on the home team and the head referee. If a decision needs to be made earlier, as was the case Tuesday, the home team athletic director and Western Athletic Conference commissioner make the decision.
Jonathan Rahmani, sophomore kinesiology major, said the Twelfth Man should take care of their football team.
If it comes to players safety, Id rather move the game. We are the Twelfth Man, we are the football team as well, Rahmani said. You cant play in a hurricane.
Nicholas Sandoval, sophomore accounting major, said the decision to postpone is more discouraging to the fans than the football team, because the fans have to wait another week to see a game. However, the football team can benefit.
For the players, I think its a good thing because they get an extra week of practice for the first SEC game, Sandoval said. I would say its a historic game for A&M, so if they get an extra week for practice then maybe theyll win it.