Big Ten's COVID-19 crisis continues: Wisconsin cancels its second straight football game with five new infections, pushing the team's total to 27 players and staff, including coach Paul Chryst
The Big Ten's COVID-19 crisis worsened on Tuesday as Wisconsin canceled Saturday's home matchup with Purdue, the second straight game the 10th-ranked Badgers have called off amid a rise in infections.
School officials announced Tuesday that three more players and two additional staffers have tested positive since Saturday, bringing the program's total number of active cases to 27. That includes 15 players and 12 staffers. Head coach Paul Chryst revealed he was COVID-positive last week.
All team-related activities for Wisconsin remain paused indefinitely.
Wisconsin has canceled Saturday's home matchup with Purdue, the second straight game the 10th-ranked Badgers have called off amid a rise in infections
Badgers head coach Paul Chryst revealed he was COVID-positive last week. Athletic director and former head football coach Barry Alvarez has now cancelled two games due to the team's COVID-19 outbreak, which has infected 27 players and staff
'I'm concerned with the health and safety of the guys,' athletic director and former head football coach Barry Alvarez said. 'No one wants to be on that field any more than I do. But I'm not going to lose track of priorities.'
This marks the second consecutive week that Wisconsin has canceled a game due to the virus outbreak. The Badgers had been scheduled to visit Nebraska on October 31. Neither game will be rescheduled.
'While we looked forward to our game this weekend against Wisconsin, we understand the Badgers' decision to cancel based on medical advice and their need to control any additional transmission of the virus within their team and staff,' Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski said in a statement.
'The health, well-being and safety of all student-athletes, coaches and staff remains the top priority for the entire Big Ten and will continue to guide decision-making.'
The state has seen a recent uptick in cases and deaths, with a record 71 of the latter on October 27.
The Purdue-Wisconsin matchup becomes the 38th game involving a Football Bowl Subdivision team to get postponed or canceled as a result of the pandemic.
Wisconsin's 27 active cases all have arisen since October 24, the day after the Badgers' season-opening 45-7 victory over Illinois. Ten players and 11 staffers have tested positive over the last seven days.
'It just didn't feel as though we had our arms around it and had things controlled as I thought we needed,' Alvarez said.
The announcement followed reports that quarterback Graham Mertz (No. 5) had tested positive twice - which would require him to sit out at least 21 days under Big Ten protocols - and that backup quarterback Chase Wolf had tested positive at least once
When Wisconsin canceled the Nebraska game last week, Alvarez said the school had reached the 'orange/red' levels in the Big Ten protocols based on its rate of positive tests. The Big Ten says teams in that area must proceed with caution; among the steps is considering the viability of playing.
Alvarez said Tuesday that Wisconsin still hasn't reached the 'red/red' threshold that forces a team to stop practices and competition for at least seven days. But he noted that 'we've continued to have positive tests daily.'
The announcement of the Wisconsin-Nebraska cancellation followed reports that quarterback Graham Mertz had tested positive twice - which would require him to sit out at least 21 days under Big Ten protocols - and that backup quarterback Chase Wolf had tested positive at least once.
The Big Ten's schedule doesn't give teams any off weeks, making it extremely difficult to reschedule canceled games.
The second cancellation gives Wisconsin little room for error in its quest to reach a second straight conference championship game.
The Big Ten requires teams to play at least six games to be eligible for the league championship game. If the average number of conference games played by all Big Ten teams is below six, programs must play no less than two fewer league games than that average to be considered.
Wisconsin (1-0) has five games remaining on its schedule before the league holds its champions week on December 19. The Badgers' next scheduled game is November 14 at No. 23 Michigan (1-1).
Wisconsin (1-0) has five games remaining on its schedule before the league holds its champions week on December 19. The Badgers' next game is November 14 at No. 23 Michigan
President Donald Trump has repeatedly taken credit for saving the Big Ten football season
'We don't leave ourselves much wiggle room right now, and we know that,' Alvarez said. 'But hopefully we can get this corralled and get back on the field and playing.'
The state of Wisconsin continues to have a rise in COVID-19 cases. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported a record 1,648 hospitalizations related to the virus on Monday. The seven-day average for new cases was 4,463, almost twice as high as a month ago.
Chancellor Blank commended the 'trainers, doctors and public health staff' who protected the 'heath of our student-athletes'
Like the Pac-12, the Big Ten originally planned to play its season in the spring of 2021, until both conferences relented under public pressure to have a traditional fall season. President Donald Trump even reached out to Kevin Warren, the commissioner of the Big Ten, which includes several schools from mid-western battleground states like Wisconsin and Michigan.
'Great News: BIG TEN FOOTBALL IS BACK,' Trump tweeted on September 16, while appearing to take credit for the decision. 'All teams to participate. Thank you to the players, coaches, parents, and all school representatives. Have a FANTASTIC SEASON! It is my great honor to have helped!!!'
He was more direct in his late-September debate against Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
'By the way, I brought back Big Ten football,' Trump said. 'It was me, and I'm very happy to do it and the people of Ohio are very proud of me.'
Sports radio show host Clay Travis facilitated the call between Trump and Warren about reinstating the fall season, according to Sports Business Journal. Travis, who seized upon that ad in a recent blog post on OutKick.com, has accused the Big Ten of postponing the 2020 fall football season to hurt Trump in Tuesday's election.
'The Big Ten decision to cancel college football was about politics,' read a tweet from Travis. 'They want to beat Donald Trump & blame him for football not being played in swing states.'
Jake Ferguson celebrates a touchdown catch in front of some Badgers 'fans' on October 23