Through the first three weeks of SEC action, the league experienced no setbacks due to the COVID-19 pandemic until today.
That changed on Tuesday when the Florida Gators announced they were pausing all football activities due to an outbreak of COVID-19 cases.
Athletic director Scott Stricklin released a statement, per Gators Wire.
The University of Florida football team has experienced an increase in positive COVID tests among players this week. Out of an abundance of caution, team activities are paused as of Tuesday afternoon.
Head coach Dan Mullen has been in communication with football players and their parents, and I have had conversations with the Southeastern Conference office, last week’s opponent Texas A&M, and this week’s opponent LSU.
These circumstances will be re-evaluated by UF Health and the athletic department’s sports medicine staff Wednesday.
The No. 9 Gators are set to host the defending national champion LSU Tigers on Saturday in Gainesville.
The USA TODAY Sports also published a report on Tuesday with the latest news about the outbreak within the Florida Gators.
After Stricklin’s official statement, Payton Titus of The Independent Florida Alligator broke the story on the number of positive cases. Although the school has said the number of positive cases is far less than 19.
#BREAKING: According to sources close to the team, 19 football players have tested positive for COVID-19. @alligatorSports @TheAlligator
— Payton Titus 😷 (@petitus25) October 13, 2020
If this weekend’s game is postponed, the two teams could look to Dec. 12 as a makeup date. The end of the regular season is Dec. 5, with every team off on Dec. 12.
The Vanderbilt at Missouri football game scheduled for Saturday has been postponed because COVID-19 issues within the Commodores and has tentatively been rescheduled for Dec. 12.
The SEC championship game is scheduled for Dec. 19.