BYU agrees to play Coastal Carolina on short notice
Word came to Coastal Carolina on Wednesday that the most significant home game in the history of the program was in serious jeopardy.
The No. 18 Chanticleers were scheduled to face 9-1 Liberty on Saturday in an unexpected marquee matchup that persuaded ESPN to send “College Game Day” to Conway, S.C., for the first time.
But when COVID-19 hit the Liberty program, Coastal Carolina needed a Plan B — as in BYU. Coach Kalani Sitake’s Cougars have been primed to pounce on short notice if the chance arose to bolster their shot at a major bowl.
“Last week I said: ‘Kalani, it’s kind of like when there’s a married couple about ready to have a baby and you have your bag packs by the door, that’s how it’s going to be maybe,’“BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe said. “You might have to pick up your bag and go.”
With ESPN and the Sun Belt Conference’s assistance, Coastal Carolina and No. 13 BYU finalized a deal Thursday to play a football game about 56 hours later.
The upstart Chanticleers (9-0) and barnstorming Cougars (9-0) meet Saturday in maybe the most intriguing game of the college football weekend, one that could position the winner for a multimillion-dollar postseason payday if No. 7 Cincinnati loses.
“I’m grateful to our coaches,” Holmoe said. “They’ve watched a lot of film this week.”
Fans banned from Rose Bowl
No spectators will be allowed at the Rose Bowl for the College Football Playoff semifinal Jan. 1 because of COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the state, county and city of Pasadena.
The Tournament of Roses said Thursday that it requested special permission to allow for a limited number of spectators or a select number of guests of players and coaches at the 90,888-seat stadium but was denied.
The Fiesta Bowl also said Thursday that no fans would be allowed at the Jan. 2 game in Glendale, Ariz., though the immediate families of players will be able to attend.
Wolverines have 12 positive cases
Michigan had at least 12 positive COVID-19 cases in the football program when it decided to cancel this weekend’s game with Maryland, a person familiar with the situation said Thursday.
The person didn’t have a breakdown of the cases.
Buckeyes still planning to play
No. 3 Ohio State will be “a little shorthanded” because of a COVID-19 outbreak but continues to practice ahead of its scheduled game at Michigan State, coach Ryan Day said.
There were no details on which players might be missing for Saturday’s game in East Lansing — the program will issue a list of unavailable players Friday — but Day for sure will be staying at home after a positive test last week.
Milton enters transfer portal
Central Florida quarterback McKenzie Milton entered the transfer portal as he tries to come back from a right leg injury two years ago that nearly required amputation, the school said Thursday.
With Dillon Gabriel playing well for the Knights, Milton decided he needed to transfer to have a chance to start again.
Milton threw for 8,683 yards and 72 scores in three years with the Knights, and led them to a 13-0 record in 2017.
Holtz awarded Medal of Freedom
Recognizing a man he described as “one of the greatest coaches in American history,” President Donald Trump awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Lou Holtz in an Oval Office ceremony.
“He’s really a life teacher,” Trump said of Holtz, who led Notre Dame to an undefeated season and the national championship in 1988 and compiled a 249132-7 record in 33 seasons as a head coach that also included stops at Arkansas, Minnesota and South Carolina.
Holtz, who endorsed Trump’s first run for president in 2016, called him the “greatest president in my lifetime.”