Although the NFL is testing players for COVID-19 every day and getting negative results for the overwhelming majority of players, the same cannot be said for college football.
Several college teams have had outbreaks, and today LSU coach Ed Orgeron said that most of his players have had the virus.
“Not all of our players but most of our players have caught it,” Orgeron said, via ESPN. “I think that hopefully they won’t catch it again and hopefully they’re not out for games.”
Orgeron is hoping his team has reached herd immunity.
“Hopefully that once you catch you don’t get it again,” he said. “I’m not a doctor. I think they have that 90-day window, so most of the players that have caught we do feel like they’ll be eligible games.”
Orgeron seems satisfied with the situation on his roster, but his comments will surely raise questions about whether it’s safe to have a college football season during a pandemic. Although healthy young people rarely die of COVID-19, there are concerns about the potential long-term health effects of the virus. Orgeron should not be blithe about the possibility that his players could face health problems down the road from a virus scientists are still trying to get a handle on.