During Saturday's Big Noon Kickoff on Fox Sports, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy went on an explosive rant about college football's lightning delay policies. The controversial media personality's words sparked a debate across the college football community.
Portnoy said ahead of the game, “Lightning, if it hits you, it's just not your day,” as he continues criticizing what he considers over-cautiousness regarding weather delays.
He claimed that fans should instead sign waivers stating that they accept the risks rather than interrupting the game for long periods.
“Everybody going in, sign a waiver. If you get struck by lightning, so be it,” he stated, suggesting modern safety protocols have become overly restrictive.
Portnoy focused on the frequency of lightning delays affecting games this season.
“I don't remember growing up. You have four or five games that have four-hour delays,” he complained while advocating for “football weather” approaches.
His most controversial point challenged current safety logic: “When they do the delay, the fans have to leave the stadium anyway. So what if they get struck outside?” This highlighted what he perceives as inconsistent reasoning in NCAA policies.
Brady Quinn responds to Dave Portnoys' rant
Brady Quinn, who played quarterback for Notre Dame and works as an analyst for Fox, pushed back immediately. “I think Dave should get struck by lightning first before he starts (ranting),” Quinn responded, referring to the safety practices.
Due to some bad weather conditions, there were numerous interruptions. In Week 4 of this season, lightning delayed the game between Notre Dame and Purdue for close to two hours. After that, officials stopped Miami’s game with South Florida for 100-plus minutes at Hard Rock Stadium. Clemson experienced a series of delays, including one for 90 minutes against Troy.
As per the current NCAA rules, officials must stop games when lightning strikes within a range of six to eight miles of the football stadiums. Furthermore, the game cannot start until there's been at least 30 minutes without lightning within that range. The NCAA modified this policy in 2007 due to lightning incidents.
