The annual showdown between LSU and Alabama could now be in jeopardy following a COVID-19 outbreak in LSU’s football program.
On Monday, LSU head coach Ed Orgeron revealed a number of LSU’s players tested positive for COVID-19 or are in quarantine as a result of contact tracing.
“We are dealing with COVID and contact tracing I can’t go into detail. It’s a very fluid situation,” Orgeron said. “We do have some players who have COVID and have some players in quarantine.”
Orgeron confirmed starters for the team were part of the outbreak, but didn’t confirm which players.
“Oh sure,” Orgeron said. “With people in quarantine and with COVID, there will always be starters.”
Orgeron would not comment on where things stood with LSU’s total scholarship numbers and whether they would push for the game to being cancelled or postponed.
“I will let the doctors and (LSU Athletics Director Scott Woodward) handle that stuff,” Orgeron said. “Those numbers are very fluid right now.”
The outbreak began a week ago, with the numbers now carrying over into the Alabama week.
“It started last week,” Orgeron said. “Probably Tuesday or Wednesday, I was told of some guys who had COVID. And the numbers are high because of the quarantine. That’s when you get into the low (scholarship) numbers.”
It’s the second LSU game that could be disrupted this season as a result of COVID-19 testing, with the Florida game being postponed to December 12 as a result of an outbreak in the Gators’ program.
Ahead of the 2020 season, the Southeastern Conference released a guideline for teams and the required number of scholarship players needed for a conference matchup to take place.
SEC teams need to have at least 53 scholarship players available to participate in a game, including a quarterback, seven offensive linemen and four defensive linemen. That said, if a team can’t meet the minimum requirements, or are under the 53-man scholarship threshold, the program could choose to play the game anyways. Otherwise, the game would be rescheduled or declared a no contest.
LSU and Alabama are both coming off a bye week, and LSU’s built-in bye week on Dec. 12 has already been filled by the Gators as a result of the postponed game in October.
Orgeron also revealed that starting quarterback Myles Brennan had been ruled out for the Alabama game as he battles a linger lower body injury. Orgeron would not confirm if both true freshmen quarterbacks in TJ Finley and Max Johnson were available or part of the team’s quarantined players.
Alabama entered the week as the nation’s No. 1 team, and William Hill Sportsbook released the line for Saturday’s contest with the Tide favored by 23 points. On Monday morning, the line inched up to 24 points, via SportsLine.
The Crimson Tide (6-0, 6-0 SEC) jumped to the top spot in the AP and Coaches Top 25 Polls after Notre Dame knocked off top-ranked Clemson in double overtime on Saturday. Notre Dame moved up to No. 2 in both polls with Ohio State at No. 3, while Clemson dropped at No. 4.
LSU (2-3, 2-3 SEC) has been in survival mode all season, coming off the program’s worst loss since 1996 with a 48-11 setback at Auburn on Halloween. Low on roster numbers entering the season, Ed Orgeron’s program has been stung by key injuries each week, including quarterback Myles Brennan, and with multiple players having served suspensions, the Tigers have failed to find any sense of consistency.
One year ago, LSU ended Alabama’s eight-game winning streak in the series with a 46-41 victory in Tuscaloosa. The win cut the Crimson Tide’s lead in the series to 53-26-5 and gave the Tigers the program’s first victory between the two since 2011.
Stay tuned to Geaux247 and 247Sports for more on this developing story.
Not a VIP subscriber to Geaux247? Sign up now to get 30 percent off an annual VIP pass and get access to everything Sonny Shipp, Shea Dixon and Billy Embody have to offer on all things LSU and access to the No. 1 site covering the Tigers.
Sign up for FREE text alerts on Geaux247 to get breaking news on commitments, decommitments, transfers, injuries, coaching changes, and more with our NEW text alert system available to all registered users and VIP subscribers. Click Here to become a FREE registered user and Click Here if you are already a VIP subscriber then follow these directions to set up your text alerts.
Want the latest news on LSU delivered right to your email? Subscribe to the Geaux247 newsletter here. It is free and a great way to get daily updates on LSU football, basketball, baseball, recruiting, and more delivered straight to your inbox. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.
Did you know Geaux247 has a podcast? That is right folks. The Geaux247 Podcast is available bringing you the best insight into the latest LSU news from Billy Embody, Shea Dixon, and Sonny Shipp. Catch all the latest episodes right here or subscribe on iTunes or Spotify today! Please leave us a rating and a comment.
