Program confirms positive virus tests
County reports COVID-19 outbreak on team with 13 confirmed cases
The San Jose State football team that concluded a historic season last week has 13 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to data provided by Santa Clara County.
The information provides the most in-depth public account to date of an outbreak within the team that appeared in the Arizona Bowl on Dec. 31.
The data did not include details about when or where the positive tests occurred. County public health officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But a San Jose State spokesman acknowledged Thursday in an email that the football team had positive tests at home and in Tucson, where the bowl game was held a week ago.
“Individuals that tested positive for COVID-19 or were deemed a close contact during testing in San Jose did not travel to Tucson,” wrote Kenneth Mashinchi, senior director of media relations.
He wrote that county officials told the school Thursday the cases associated with football meet the criteria to be defined as an outbreak.
According to the California Department of Public Health, a coronavirus outbreak is defined in a non-healthcare workplace as at least three COVID-19 cases among workers at the same worksite within a 14- day period.
The reporting of the positive cases comes at a time when San Jose State has been criticized for recent actions involving novel coronavirus protocols and what it has said publicly about why a half dozen players missed the bowl game. Problems seemingly began when the Spartans returned to San Jose on Dec. 20 after winning their first-ever Mountain West Conference title in Las Vegas the previous day.
San Jose State coach Brent Brennan said the team did not consider staying in Las Vegas or going directly to Tucson after defeating Boise State 34-20 for the title. Instead, the Spartans returned to San Jose, which was under mandatory quarantine for anyone traveling from more than 150 miles away.
Brennan said he gave the Spartans a week off from football activities so players, many of whom hadn’t seen family members since July 14, could spend Christmas with loved ones. He said the coaching staff decided to have the in-season break for the mental health of the players.
At the time, Santa Clara County Executive Dr. Jeff Smith told the Bay Area News Group that the team sent a bad message by ignoring a 10- day mandatory quarantine. Smith said the team’s plan to stay one week in the area was “not an appropriate protocol and doesn’t protect anybody against anything.”
The Spartans left a week later for Tucson, where they lost to Ball State 34-13 in the Arizona Bowl.
Mashinchi, the school’s spokesman, wrote Thursday that SJSU officials took precautions to minimize contact between players, coaches, team personnel and the general community during the week the Spartans returned from Las Vegas.
A school communique dated Dec. 28 that was obtained by the Bay Area News Group alerted the campus that more than one individual who had tested positive had visited student dormitories and the football athletic facilities between Dec. 25-27. The Spartans left from their facilities in the early evening of Dec. 27 for the trip to Tucson.
Brennan and school officials faced more scrutiny four days later when they did not quickly explain why six players, including defensive lineman Cade Hall — the Mountain West’s defensive player of the year — and star receiver Bailey Gaither, and two coaches were unavailable for the bowl game.
Shortly before kickoff, the school’s radio broadcast identified
five starters and offensive coordinator Kevin McGiven and defensive coordinator Derrick Odum as not available for the game.
San Jose State officials acknowledged this week for the first time that members of the football team’s traveling party tested positive for COVID-19. School officials have not announced how many people are involved. Mashinchi said those who traveled to Arizona were tested daily, including before the game.
“Individuals who tested positive or were deemed close contacts in Tucson did not travel back to San Jose on December 31 and are isolating or quarantining,” Mashinchi wrote.
It is unclear whether the 13 confirmed cases reported by the county include those from the Arizona trip.
A Pima County spokesman said the Tucson-based public health department could not provide any information about the status of players and coaches participating in the Arizona Bowl, citing a state law that protects privacy for competitive business reasons.
Mashinchi said team members were tested again in San Jose after returning from the game. He said no positive tests were reported.
“Everyone in the travel party that remained in Santa Clara County began their mandatory quarantine immediately,” Mashinchi wrote.
Until the last few weeks, San Jose State had answered every challenge this season leading to the Mountain West title and its best performance since 1939. Brennan said players were told in July that the team with the best COVID-19 discipline would win the league championship.
“I feel like that happened,” he said.
San Jose State did not cause any cancellations or postponements during the season. It missed two regular- season games because Fresno State and Boise State had to cancel games while dealing with coronavirus issues.
SJSU had to change its schedule because of Santa Clara County’s Nov. 28 ban on sporting events to slow the spread of COVID-19. The Spartans played a home game in Hawaii and two home contests in Las Vegas instead of CEFCU Stadium in San Jose.
In late September, athletic director Marie Tuite announced that two football players had tested positive for COVID-19 in the 2½ months the Spartans had been on campus for summer drills.
In October, school officials said none of the 141 players, coaches and staff that went to Humboldt State for preseason training tested positive during the 1 ½-week stay.
Later in the fall, a school official said 11 people across the SJSU athletic department had positive tests. The New York Times reported that San Jose State ranked second best in the Mountain West Conference for coronavirus cases for schools that fully completed the newspaper’s survey.