WSU Cougars’ game with California canceled due to COVID-19
Dec 12, 2020, 12:08 PM | Updated: 12:49 pm
The WSU Cougars will not play Saturday due to a positive COVID-19 test by a Cal player. (Getty)
(Getty)
For the third time in the shortened 2020 season, the WSU Cougars have had a football game canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this time, it’s their game against the California Golden Bears.
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WSU has already had games against Stanford as well as the Cougars’ in-state rival UW Huskies canceled due to positive COVID-19 tests that caused the Cougars to fall below the Pac-12’s threshold for the minimum amount of scholarship players required to participate in a Pac-12 contest. This game, however, was canceled due to a positive test in the California program. Cal had this issue at the start of the year as well, as positive tests caused the cancelation of the Golden Bears’ season opener against the UW Huskies.
Per the Pac-12, the positive test came Saturday in mandatory gameday testing. Due to close contacts and contact tracing in the program, the team was not able to meet the requirement for the minimum amount of scholarship players. As has been the case this season in the Pac-12, the game was ruled a no-contest.
Statement regarding today's Cal at Washington State #Pac12FB game: pic.twitter.com/rE8lOpieTw
— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) December 12, 2020
The game was also set to be the return of star WSU running back Max Borghi, who has yet to play in 2020 due to a back injury. Borghi, a junior who had over 1,400 scrimmage yards and 16 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2019, was expected to be a key part of first-year WSU coach Nick Rolovich’s offense, but his 2020 debut will be on hold yet again.
Statement regarding today's Cal at Washington State #Pac12FB game: pic.twitter.com/rE8lOpieTw
— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) December 12, 2020
The UW Huskies also had issues with positive COVID-19 tests this week, which caused the cancelation of their rivalry game against Oregon. Like WSU, the Huskies have also had three games get canceled in this shortened season due to positive tests.
The Cougars are currently 1-2 and it’s currently unclear who the Cougars will play in their scheduled Week 7 slot as it is dependent on which teams make the Pac-12 Championship Game. It is possible that if the UW Huskies, who are 3-1, aren’t the winners of the Pac-12 North that the Apple Cup could take place that weekend, but nothing has been announced to date.
This will be updated with any additional information.
