Miami takes shot at Florida State after Doak Campbell power outage

Florida State Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Miami takes shot at Florida State after Doak Campbell power outage

By Olamilekan Ajayi | Last updated Sep 7, 2026 10:29 PM ET

Miami's official football account posted on Monday night while Florida State and SMU waited out the power outage that had stopped their ACC opener in Tallahassee.

"The lights are ON at our house," the account wrote. "See YOU at Hard Rock on Thursday."

The lights inside Doak Campbell Stadium went out at 7:29 p.m. ET, six minutes before kickoff, after a power surge and a blown transformer on the west side of the building. Kickoff was pushed to 9:15 p.m. ET, and the teams played without helmet communication, sideline tablets, a public address system or scoreboards. Doak Campbell reopened before the 2025 season after a $250 million renovation.

The delay ran more than 90 minutes on ESPN with no other football on the schedule, which is a promotional window no athletic department can buy.

The lights are ON at our house
See YOU at Hard Rock on Thursday pic.twitter.com/DRElnDpKWU
— Miami Hurricanes (@MiamiHurricanes) September 8, 2026

What’s Miami actually selling on Thursday?

Miami hosts Florida A&M at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday on the ACC Network in its home opener. The Hurricanes have won 11 straight in the series and took the last meeting, 56-9, in 2024. Florida A&M will have played at Hard Rock twice in five days by Thursday night.

Hard Rock Stadium belongs to the Miami Dolphins, seats about 65,000 and sits more than 20 miles from the university's Coral Gables campus. Its last renovation came in 2016. The Hurricanes are, of course, tenants in the house they were bragging about.

Florida State's own trip to Hard Rock comes on Oct. 17, when Miami hosts the Seminoles and has asked its crowd to wear orange. The sign-off carries more than one meaning with that date on the calendar.

The same building hosted the College Football Playoff National Championship on Jan. 19, when Indiana beat Miami, 27-21, in front of 67,227.

The Hurricanes have not won a national title since 2001. They entered 2026 ranked No. 7 and opened with a 45-6 win at Stanford on Friday.

Mike Norvell is in his seventh season at Florida State.

Olamilekan Ajayi

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