Just for clarification, the flight was MCO->DFW, so the tarmac wait was at DWF rather than MCO.

MCO is my home airport, so I fly out of there all the time. I've had to wait for a gate a handful of times, but never more than maybe 10-15 minutes... never 2.75 hours like at DFW. I know the principles are all the same, and most of the airports work the same way, but don't want MCO to take more blame than they already deserve. LOL

Also, I'm not entirely convinced the issue was all about holding for a gate. The captain did announce several times that the gate was almost free, should be free in 10-15 minutes, etc., but his final announcement was that he was getting no information and really had no idea what was actually happening. I think that's MUCH more of a F9 breakdown than an actual gate operation problem. That's just my opinion, though.