Just a few weeks after the NCAA lifted the moratorium on student-athletes taking part in voluntary workouts, the inevitable wave of players testing positive for the coronavirus has arrived.
As schools across the country begin testing their student-athletes for COVID-19 before allowing them to practice, many athletic departments are already announcing a flurry of positive cases for the coronavirus.
Arkansas State announces seven student-athletes test positive for coronavirus
Just a day after Marshall University announced a third student in its athletic program has the coronavirus, Arkansas State announced an even larger outbreak on Thursday.
In a statement, via KAIT 8 in Arkansas, chancellor Kelly Damphousse announced that seven student-athletes have tested positive for the coronavirus.
“This is a day that we knew would come, not just at A-State,” Damphousse said, via news release. “All seven students continue to be asymptomatic as of this writing.”
The university will follow similar safety protocols being used by schools across the country. As a result, all seven student-athletes will be kept in isolation for 14 days.
Arkansas State is currently under the first phase of the state’s COVID-19 operation plan, which Gov. Asa Hutchinson recently announced will remain in place for the immediate future.
Oklahoma State’s positive coronavirus tests
Oklahoma State’s star linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga became one of the first football players to announce he tested positive for the coronavirus. Following his revelation, the Cowboys announced two other student-athletes also tested positive.
The university, which was set to welcome back freshman athletes this week, was forced to tell freshmen to stay at home for the time being.
As we’ve learned from all three schools, there will be even more players that will test positive for the coronavirus in the coming days and weeks. It doesn’t put the 2020 college football season at risk as of now, but disruptions are likely on the horizon if this continues through the summer.