The Abilene Christian Wildcats and Mercer Bears came back out of their locker rooms ready to play a scrappy second half, but returned shortly afterward following officials invoking an inclement weather delay.
ACU and Mercer – the 25th-ranked team in latest Stats Perform FCS Top 25 poll – played 33 seconds of the third quarter before lightning strikes in the vicinity of Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium sent the game into a weather delay.
The Wildcats, Bears and officials cleared the sidelines and playing surface to go back to their respective locker rooms, while the Wildcat Stadium PA announcer asked fans to clear the stands and seek shelter in the stadium concourse to wait out the weather delay in safety.
Both teams left the field of play around 8:45 p.m. to return to their locker rooms with heavy rainfall beginning a few minutes later.
Thunderstorms rolled from the west to the east from Sweetwater and Big Spring across the Abilene metro area Saturday night, drenching Wildcat Stadium and its immediate surrounding area in heavy rainfall.
NCAA rules regarding inclement weather delays for college football state that any lightning strike within 8 miles of the stadium requires a 30-minute lightning delay.
Each additional lightning strike within an 8-mile radius of the stadium adds an additional 30 minutes to the mandatory weather delay.
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Sporadic lightning strikes have continued in the vicinity of Wildcat Stadium through 9:15 p.m. and are expected to continue until 10 p.m. with second-half play set to resume shortly afterward.
Abilene Christian and Mercer will be tied 17-17 with 11:27 remaining in the third quarter once play resumes.
The Bears will have possession of the ball and will be facing a second down and 6 situation at their own 49-yard line once the weather delay has been lifted.
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Abilene Christian-Mercer football game enters third-quarter weather delay
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