SEC football faces COVID-19 outbreaks

With big matchups and primetime games originally scheduled for this week college football and SEC now must tackle its COVID-19 outbreaks.

Who is affected?

The Florida Gators football team stopped activities this week amid positive coronavirus tests from players and coaches. As the week went on, the amount of positive cases continued to increase. This led to the postponement of this week’s home game against LSU.

This week’s events came after Florida’s head coach Dan Mullen made comments to “pack The Swamp” following the Gators loss at Texas A&M. Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin spoke to the media on Wednesday to talk about where the university was at with its outbreak. He says football isn’t the only postponement the school is dealing with.

In addition, Alabama is making headlines regarding positive cases. On Wednesday, head coach Nick Saban and athletic director Greg Byrne tested positive. The No. 2 Crimson Tide will play host to No. 3 Georgia this weekend. Offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian is overseeing preparations for this weeks game.

Those around college football are hoping this serves as a wake-up call. Furthermore, even with college athletics continuing in some manner, it’s important to remember no one is immune. ESPN college football reporter Tom Rinaldi weighs in on this.

Alabama football has been testing daily, Saban has always worn a mask and taken this seriously, and he still got it. A reminder of how challenging this virus is and the long fight still ahead.

Testing can prevent outbreaks from spreading, but it can’t stop the virus.

— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) October 14, 2020

Another program facing an outbreak is Ole Miss who just came off a loss to Alabama. Head coach Lane Kiffin says the team still plans to play its scheduled game at Arkansas. The LSU-Florida game is tentatively rescheduled for Dec. 12, the same day Vanderbilt-Missouri was postponed to due to the Commodores’ outbreak.

What is the SEC doing?

It’s clear that coronavirus is having an early impact to the college football season. In addition, programs and coaches knew this season would be a challenge which is why there are protocols and rules in place. ESPN’s Andrea Adelson gives a breakdown of where the conference stands.

This current wave of positive tests among SEC football teams must be a warning. Therefore, players and coaches have to be more careful to prevent further issues. Furthermore, Stricklin stated this about following the protocols and rules.

It is no doubt there is still uncertainty among some matchups and SEC football in general.

All sound taken from ABC Newscall.