An outbreak of positive COVID-19 cases at LSU has put Saturday's LSU-Alabama game in jeopardy.
"We are dealing with COVID and contact tracing I can’t go into detail. It’s a very fluid situation," LSU head coach Orgeron said Monday, via Geaux247. "We do have some players who have COVID and have some players in quarantine."
Orgeron did not specify how many players have tested positive and/or are in the crosshairs of the contract tracing protocol, but did state an undisclosed number of starters are in that group.
Cases have been on the rise across the nation but not necessarily in Louisiana. The state's health department estimates around 5,000 active cases at the moment.
Of note: LSU already suffered at least one widespread outbreak inside the locker room over the summer and early fall. "I think most of our players, not all of our players but most of our players have caught it," Orgeron said on Sept. 15.
LSU's date with No. 1 Alabama is an annual highlight of the SEC schedule. The game is slated for a 6 p.m. ET kickoff on CBS, immediately following the network's coverage of The Masters. The Tigers' 46-41 victory last season halted Alabama's 8-game winning streak in the series and served as a landmark victory in their route to the national championship.
This season, Alabama has won its six games by an average of 25.2 points, while LSU has stumbled to a 2-3 start. The Tigers have already seen their Oct. 17 visit to Florida postponed to Dec. 12 due to an outbreak at Florida, leaving no open dates on their schedule. The SEC has not canceled a game since Oct. 17, playing all 14 contests as scheduled.
If this Saturday's game is not played, one would assume the SEC would deem LSU-Alabama more important than LSU-Florida since the former is an intra-divisional contest.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.