Dozens of LSU Football Players Forced to Quarantine in Latest College Football COVID-19 Setback

Friday was far from a good day for college football. Reports suggested that 23 Clemson Tigers football players all tested positive for COVID-19, the most of any university at the time. That, sadly, wouldn't be the last of the bad news on that subject.

According to Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated, at least 30 players on the LSU football team have been placed in quarantine due to the coronavirus. Not all 30 are confirmed to have the virus, but those without a verified positive test reportedly came into contact with those who had.

No player or staff member has required hospitalization, and no one has experienced effects beyond mild symptoms related to the coronavirus. LSU senior associate athletic trainer Shelly Mullenix told Sports Illustrated that the rise in cases are to scale with other states following Memorial Day weekend and the nationwide George Floyd protests.

However, a section of the 30-plus players quarantined themselves after going to a number of nightclubs near LSU's campus, which has been dubbed "Tigerland." The Louisiana Department of Health revealed on Friday that more than 100 club-goers tested positive for COVID-19, and told all who attended to place themselves in a 14-day quarantine. Even so, none of those student athletes yielded a positive test.

The uptick in new coronavirus cases has sadly become an increasingly common trend in college athletics. A number of Power 5 football programs have halted voluntary workouts due to the increase in positive test results, with Kansas State being the most recent to announce such a decision after 14 tests came up positive.

With this newest update out of Baton Rouge, a college football season feels more out of reach than before. For the sake of the fans and the safety of the players themselves, the trend line needs to start moving in the right direction soon.