Six more COVID-19 cases among Gators players
GAINESVILLE — The University of Florida reported six new positive COVID-19 cases among the Gators football team as Dan Mullen’s squad looks to move past a recent outbreak that stalled its season.
The data is based on test results from Tuesday of last week through Monday, during which the school said 230 tests were performed.
Elsewhere in the athletics department, UF reported six athletes in a sport other than football tested positive for COVID-19.
The No. 10 Gators (2-1) returned to the practice field Monday after a two-week layoff following the outbreak to begin preparations for Saturday’s night game against Missouri (2-2) in the Swamp.
Mullen declined to offer exact numbers, but he said Monday the Gators will have at least the SEC minimum of 53 scholarship players available after having to postpone two games due to a lack of available athletes.
The SEC requires infected players to undergo a four-day period easing back into full practices, positing another obstacle to the Gators’ return.
More than two dozen players and a handful of coaches, including Mullen, tested positive for COVID-19 during a 10-day period following the Gators’ narrow loss Oct. 10 at Texas A&M.
UF medical personnel have administered daily tests to everyone in the Gators’ Texas A&M travel party — around 150 people — since the game.
The school normally tests Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday,
releasing testing data at 1 p.m. Tuesday each week during the regular season. Since the outbreak, UF shifted to testing football players and staff daily to help contain the spread of the virus.