The No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes received a spike of positive COVID-19 test Friday, Nov. 27, 2020. Those positive tests lead to the cancellation of their Saturday game with Illinois. This may cause the Big Ten’s best team to become ineligible to play for the conference title.
Coach Day Test Positive
The announcement was made Monday night that the Ohio State head coach Ryan Day tested positive and would not be able to make the trip to Illinois for the game. After additional test results came in, it was evident that the game had to be called.
The team normally reveals the number of positive test results but did not do so in this case. Ohio State brought all football activities to a halt, and athletic director Gene Smith made this statement:
We have continued to experience an increase in positive tests over the course of this week. The health, safety, and well-being of our student-athletes is our main concern, and our decisions on their welfare will continue to be guided by our medical staff.
Ohio State will reestablish activities as soon as the medical staff lets them know that it is safe to do so based on protocols put in place by the Big Ten Conference.
Ohio State has already canceled the Maryland game prior to this game because of the COVID-19 positive test coming from the Maryland program. The Big Ten states that every Big Ten Conference team must play at least six games in order to be considered to participate in the conference championship game.
Disqualification From Big Ten Championship Game
The Buckeyes have only played four games this year and are presently 4-0. But if they do not play their last two remaining games against Michigan State on December 5 and a home game against Michigan on December 12, their chances of participating in the Big Ten Championship Game will be zero.
Written by Omari Jahi
Edited by Cathy Milne-Ware
Sources:
Yahoo! Sports: No. 3 Ohio State cancels game at Illinois after virus spike, RALPH D. RUSSO
ESPN: No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes cancel Saturday’s football game vs. Illinois Fighting Illini, Heather Dinich
Fox 23 News: The Latest: No. 3 Ohio State cancels game at Illinois, The Associated Press
Feature and Top Image by IAEA Imagebank Courtesy of Wikimedia – Creative Commons License
Inset Image by Maize & Blue Nation Courtesy of Wikimedia – Creative Commons License
