The Terps had not practiced since Nov. 10, but they will have a normal week of game preparation before facing Indiana. Coach Michael Locksley, who tested positive for the coronavirus, will lead the team virtually until his isolation period ends Friday. Locksley will be able to travel with the team to No. 12 Indiana (4-1) and coach the game.
“The last two weeks have been trying for everyone associated with our football program, but I am proud of the resiliency and positive outlook Coach Locksley and our team has had,” Athletic Director Damon Evans said in a statement. “The team went through weight training this morning and will practice this afternoon. We are optimistic that we will be able to play this Saturday at Indiana. As we have done throughout, we will continue daily testing, monitor those results and base all decisions upon those results.”
In a statement, Evans said he and Locksley “have stayed in constant communication and he’s feeling good.”
Eight players on Maryland’s team tested positive for the virus between Nov. 5-11, and an additional 15 players tested positive between Nov. 12-18. Any player who tested positive for the virus after Nov. 7, the day Maryland played at Penn State, will not be available against Indiana. Some players who tested positive later in the two-week span will also miss the Terps’ next game at Michigan.
The Big Ten’s protocol requires players who contracted the virus to sit out 21 days so they can isolate and then go through health screenings before returning to play. Maryland does not release the names or positions of the players who have tested positive, and the school has not provided more specific testing data beyond cumulative results for week-long periods.
Since Nov. 19, only one team member had a positive result during daily antigen testing, but the confirmatory PCR test was negative. On Sunday, every player’s PCR test came back negative.
Wisconsin is the only other team in the Big Ten that has canceled games because of an outbreak in its program. The Badgers dealt with a similar-sized outbreak and also managed to return to play after missing two games. As cases of the coronavirus rise across the country, the college football calendar continues to face more disruption as the season progresses. Eighteen games were canceled or postponed last week.
Before the Terps had to pause team activities, Maryland (2-1) won back-to-back games over Minnesota (2-3) and Penn State (0-5). After the matchup with Indiana, the Terps have games scheduled at Michigan and against Rutgers. The season will conclude on the weekend of Dec. 19 when all Big Ten programs will face the team in the opposite division with the same spot in the standings, with possible tweaks to avoid rematches. Despite the two-week hiatus, Maryland is still in position to earn a spot in a bowl game for the first time since 2016.
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