The Sugar Bowl will not be played on Wednesday due to a brutal pickup truck attack in New Orleans, which killed at least 15 people and injured scores.
Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley announced at a press conference that the College Football Playoff quarterfinal between Georgia and Notre Dame will be postponed by 24 hours, and that additional information would be issued as soon as possible.
The decision to postpone the game came after the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans undertook a security scan following the discovery of two improvised explosive devices at the scene of the attack in the French Quarter. According to Jason Williams, the district attorney for Orleans Parish, which includes New Orleans, investigators are conducting a grid search to see whether any other explosive devices were put.
The attack took place around 3:15 a.m. CT Wednesday in New Orleans’ bustling French Quarter district, which is regarded globally as one of the most popular New Year’s Eve party spots. The vehicle’s driver was killed in a confrontation with police after the incident, according to the FBI, which is leading an investigation “with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism.”
According to New Orleans police, as the vehicle came to a stop, the driver exited the truck and opened fire on responding policemen. Officers returned fire, killing the driver, according to authorities.
“He was hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did,” Kirkpatrick told me. “It was really planned behavior. This man was trying to run over as many people as possible.”
According to the school, at least one Georgia student sustained significant injuries as a result of the incident and is being treated. According to a representative for the Georgia athletic department, all team staff and travel party members were safe.
The FBI says it is still looking into the attacker, 42-year-old Shamsud Din Jabbar, a US citizen from Texas, to establish “potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations.” An Islamic State group flag was discovered in the vehicle driven by Jabbar.
The Georgia and Notre Dame football teams landed in New Orleans on Sunday and are staying in downtown hotels mere blocks from where the violence occurred.
Atlanta Police announced that specialist units and more police would be deployed to the area surrounding Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Wednesday. The Peach Bowl in Atlanta featured another College Football Playoff quarterfinal, with Texas taking on Arizona State in a game that began on time.
The White House confirmed that President Joe Biden had received a briefing on the attack, and the Justice Department confirmed that Attorney General Merrick Garland had also received one.
Speaking to reporters in Delaware, Biden expressed “anger and frustration” about the incident but declined to say further until more information became available.
“My heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday,” Biden said in a statement. “There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation’s communities.”
