SABAN STILL MAY COACH AGAINST GEORGIA AFTER ALL
Don’t count out Nick Saban just yet.
Alabama’s legendary football coach posted a negative test for COVID-19 on Thursday, the university confirmed Friday, and the school continues to make a concerted effort to overturn the SEC’s initial determination that Saban would be unable to coach his team for tonight’s game against No. 3 Georgia.
The SEC has confirmed that three consecutive negative tests in the wake of a positive test, which Saban registered Wednesday, would constitute a “false positive” and allow the Crimson Tide’s 68-year-old coach to be on the sidelines at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday night.
Alabama updated Saban’s medical situation with an afternoon news release, as it has done each day since
Wednesday.
“Coach Saban was evaluated again today by Dr. (Jimmy) Robinson,” the statement said. “He continues to be asymptomatic and without fever. We are continuing to follow the SEC Return to Activity and Medical Guidance Task Force Protocol for testing asymptomatic positives. A PCR test was repeated Thursday by the SEC appointed lab and was negative. For clarification, the initial positive result came from an outside lab we’ve used to supplement the SEC mandated testing.
“He will continue to remain in isolation and receive daily PCR tests. Should he have three negative PCR tests through the SEC appointed lab, each 24 hours apart, the initial test would be considered a false positive pursuant to SEC protocols and he would be allowed to return.”
That means that Saban
needs negative results to come back from the test he underwent Friday and another one Saturday in order to coach his team.
Otherwise, he will have to watch the game from home
with his wife, Terry, as was the plan before these latest developments.
Friday’s game No. 17 SMU 37, Tulane 34 (OT):
Brandon Crossley ended the first overtime possession with an interception and Chris Naggar made a 34-yard field goal to give SMU a victory over Tulane on Friday night in New Orleans.
Crossley intercepted Tulane freshman Michael Pratt’s pass to put the Mustangs (5-0, 3-0 American Athletic) into position to win with the field goal.
SMU’s Shane Buechele completed 23-of-37 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns. He entered the game second nationally in passing yards.
Notable
UCLA will still be outfitted by Under Armour this season even though the university is suing the apparel company for breach of contract.
Athletic Director Martin Jarmond has said there isn’t enough time to get a deal in place with a new outfitter.
Under Armour announced in June that it is ending its contract with the school. The two sides were four years into a 15-year deal worth $280 million, which remains the highest in college athletics.
• The Southeastern Conference postponed next week’s game between Missouri and No. 10 Florida on Friday, the third league contest moved this week because of COVID-19 outbreaks.
Kansas coach Les Miles has been cleared to return to the Jayhawks after his positive test for COVID-19, but out of caution is skipping the team’s trip to West Virginia for today’s game.
Defensive end Samdup Miller, safety Travis Whillock, quarterback Aidan Smith and tight end Jason Whittaker have opted out of Northwestern’s pandemic-shortened season, the school said Friday.