Several Cal players unavailable against Arizona due to COVID-19 protocols

According to the Pac-12 Network, nearly 30 members of the Cal football program have been ruled out of Saturday’s game due to COVID-19 protocols.

There are 24 players and five coaches unavailable for Saturday’s game against Arizona, including quarterback Chase Garbers. Graduate transfer and former Penn and Western Carolina quarterback Ryan Glover started in Garbers’ place and is currently 3-for-9 with 32 yards.

Garbers, who’s the No. 2-ranked passer in the Pac-12, is averaging 247.4 yards per game and has completed 171 of 269 passes — a 63.6% clip. As a team, Cal’s passing game ranks fourth in the league.

On Thursday, the school announced “multiple players” were in COVID-19 protocols, but details were not provided. According to Cal head coach Justin Wilcox, players began to feel unwell on Monday. Many of the players out of Saturday’s game are asymptomatic. 

“Our primary concern is for the health of our student-athletes, and we continue to monitor the situation closely,” Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton said in a statement.

“As we know, this pandemic is not over. We need to respect it and understand that it can affect much of what we do every day. Even with 99 percent of our football student-athletes fully vaccinated, we have seen that breakthrough cases are still possible.”

Cal has reported their team is 99% vaccinated. The school said all players making the trip were tested and cleared to travel.

The game is tied 0-0 in the second quarter. While there are no points on the board, the Cal defense is already struggling to contain Arizona’s run game. They have 83 yards on the ground, and three running backs have a rush of at least 10 yards.

Arizona is still seeking their first win of the season. They lead the series 18-14-2 all-time, and the Wildcats have won the last five games.

Cal was a 9-point favorite.

Cal seeking third-straight conference win

After starting their Pac-12 schedule 0-3, the Bears have beaten Colorado and Oregon State in back-to-back weeks.

Their offense came alive last weekend against the Beavers, posting 39 points. Cal had previously only scored more than 30 points once against an FBS opponent this season.

Their remaining games come against three very inconsistent opponents in USC, Stanford and UCLA.