Cal, USC reschedule matchup after cancelation due to COVID-19 outbreak

On3 imageby:Nikki Chavanelle11/10/21

NikkiChavanelle

Cal and USC will now play their matchup on Dec. 4 after canceling the original game this weekend. Dec. 4 is the day after the conference title game.

The Pac-12 bout is off due to COVID-19 issues at Cal, the university confirmed Tuesday night.

The USC-Cal matchup is the first game of the 2021 season to get postponed due to COVID-19. The NCAA postponed or canceled more than 130 games in 2020.

The Golden Bears program doesn’t have enough players to field a team due to COVID-19-related quarantines and isolations. This aligns with previous reports that Cal had a COVID-19 outbreak within its program. Cal was without 24 players and five coaches for last Saturday’s game against Arizona, which the Golden Bears lost 10-3.

Golden Bears evade forfeiture

Before the season began, the Pac-12 released a new set of rules outlining what could happen in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak, and the conference introduced a forfeiture rule for teams with an insufficient number of players.

“It was a difficult decision to postpone this Saturday’s game against USC,” Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton said. “We know how important every one of our games is to our student-athletes, especially our seniors who have been incredible representatives of the program, but it was the right thing to do.

“Due to additional impact on specific position groups, we have decided to postpone Saturday’s game. We have had multiple COVID-19 positives within our program, and we are taking every step we can to mitigate the spread and protect the greater community.”

For now, California will stay at 3-6 and USC maintains its 4-5 record. The Trojans will play UCLA next weekend while the Golden Bears prep for Stanford.

“Our heart goes out to all of the people who enjoy our games in so many ways and especially the players who only get so many chances to go out and play them,” Cal head coach Justin Wilcox echoed. “Postponing this game was a last resort and not an action any of us wanted to take, however it was not possible for us to field a team on Saturday.”

Cal dealing with COVID-19 outbreak

While the program is dealing with the ongoing outbreak, players have spoken out about what they feel is unfair treatment.

Cal quarterback Chase Garbers vented his frustrations with the University Health Services’ handling of the recent COVID-19 outbreak via Twitter on Monday. He asserted the players are under pressure from the university to take tests that are not mandatory.

“We players are frustrated with our University Health Services,” Garbers began in a statement. “City and University officials spoke to us today, (and) they really had no answers for us. They just beat around the bush and deflected our questions. However, we did come away with that the testing last week was not mandated by anyone. It was highly recommended, means they should’ve never happened.”

Garbers was one of the 24 players that could not participate in last Saturday’s loss versus Arizona.