The high school football season-opener between Benjamin Russell and Mae Jamison in Alabama did not go as planned. The game was put on pause, indefinitely, with the score tied at 0-0 in the first quarter.
As of this writing, the plan is for the contest to resume from its current point in more than two months.
Neither high school football team wanted to forfeit. Their individual schedules just so happened to create a possible solution!
Mae Jemison and Benjamin Russell began the high school football season at Alabama A&M in Huntsville.
Established in 2016, Mae Jemison High School enrolls ~858 students in Grades 9-12. The Jaguars compete in Class 5A, Region 8 of the Alabama High School Athletic Association out of Huntsville, Alabama. Established in 1950, Benjamin Russell High School enrolls ~850 students in Grades 9-12. The Wildcats compete in Class 5A, Region 2 of the AHSAA out of Alexander City, Alabama.
These two high school football programs met at Louis Crews Stadium on the campus of Alabama A&M University on Thursday night to begin the regular season.
The high-profile non-region matchup featured some of the state’s top recruits.
It did not take long for things to go awry. Kickoff took place at 7:00 p.m. CT. Power issues caused stadium lights to flicker and the scoreboard to glitch about 10 minutes later.
Power issues at Alabama A&M early into a matchup of Mae Jemison and Benjamin Russell. Stadium lights flickering and the scoreboard isn’t working properly; creating a bit of confusion. pic.twitter.com/kb62E9asYE
— Thomas Ashworth (@_ThomasAshworth) August 21, 2026
As it would turn out, one of the stadium’s transformers blew. The game continued for 20 minutes but the power never returned. It eventually became too dark to play without lights and the game went into a delay around 7:30 p.m. Both coaches met with officials on how to proceed.
Nobody knew what to do.
Certainly not something you see every day…. Benjamin Russell vs Mae Jemison was cancelled tonight in Huntsville because a transformer blew, knocking out power at Alabama A&M's Louis Crews Stadium.
— Davis Baker (@DavisBakerTV) August 21, 2026
Officials from the two schools are set to meet Monday to discuss how this is… pic.twitter.com/GC6sA0Bj5U
To make things even more difficult, a massive thunderstorm was on the way. Even if the game could continue, it was going to be a mess.
The blown transformer forced a two-month delay.
Crews from Huntsville Utilities were called to Louis Crews Stadium as soon as the game went into delay. If they were able to restore power within the hour, play could continue. The blown transformer made that impossible.
The power never came back on. Officials announced an indefinite suspension around 7:55 p.m.
The game is not canceled. In order for the high school football game to be canceled, one of the teams would have to forfeit. Neither Benjamin Russell nor Mae Jemison wanted to do so. They did not want to take a loss for a game that did not get past 0-0 in the first quarter.
Therefore, the game remains in suspension. Per Thomas Ashworth of AL.com, there is a plan for resumption!
The Jaguars and Wildcats both have a bye week scheduled for Week 10. The goal is for the game to continue on the last weekend of October. We don’t yet have confirmation on the schedule change. We don’t yet know when or where.
The Alabama high school football season-opener between Mae Jemison and Benjamin Russell is stuck in the first quarter for at least two months due to a blown transformer. That’s a new one!